Fever Pitch
by Kaiser Wilhelm
Summary: Final story in the Fever Trilogy. Lee has spent years and years with Neji, but as Neji enters his twenties, and the final stages of the disease, it would seem that his time is running out.
1. Present: Lee and Gaara

***Here's the final installment of the Fever Trilogy! It's a little different than the other two, both in structure and in style…longer too. Basically, This was originally supposed to be a oneshot…but then over 20,000 words later, I asked Hanai-kun whether or not he/she (don't know, not making assumptions) thought it was too long for one chapter, and overall, yes, yes it is. Anyway, be sure to thank Hanai-kun, because without her/him, you'd probably have to wait another 5 month for me to finish the entire story. I plan to update very soon, (possibly tomorrow) since I already have so much written for this fic. There're a lot of flashbacks in this, so it's probably going to go present, then past, then present, then past (and so on and so forth). Just in case, the past will be italicized. Anyway, please enjoy!**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 1: Present—Lee and Gaara**

Lee raced to the canyon in Tsuchi no Kuni, where he knew the most important person in his life to be. Gaara was sprinting at full-speed beside him.

They had finally found him, Uchiha Sasuke.

Shikamaru had wanted to get it right this time. All of the Rookie Nine, Team Gai, and Gaara and his siblings had gone to finish what they had started so many years prior. In the end, it had turned out almost as badly as the first time. Ino and Temari had been the first to be detained by an enemy. Then, Shino, Kiba, and Kankuro. Sakura and Hinata next. At this point, Shikamaru had begun to worry (never a good sign). He told Choji to go back and help anyone that he could. The Akimichi had agreed whole-heartedly. By then it had just been Shikamaru, Gaara, Lee, Tenten, Neji, Naruto, and Sai. It seemed like a skilled team, so the group still had hope. Tenten had even begun to joke. She was next, taking on a powerful enemy all by herself. Then, the unexpected happened. Uchiha Madara appeared. Naruto had no choice but to stay behind and fight, Sai by his side. Shikamaru, Gaara, Lee, and Neji…they were strong; they stood quite a chance against Sasuke, but not Madara. To fight him, Naruto's sage-mode was an absolute necessity. With a heavy heart, the blonde stayed to fight, while the other four went after Sasuke. But, they were separated. Lee and Gaara were forced to fight one enemy, while Shikamaru and Neji followed after Sasuke.

And now, here they were, heading towards the direction in which Shikamaru and Neji had gone, their enemy long since defeated. Lee looked to his redheaded companion, who had an indeterminable expression. He spent a particularly long time gazing at the redhead's right eye, now completely covered by his hair. The taijutsu-specialist shook himself out of his musings.

"Gaara-kun," he began. "Are you sure that you do not wish to rest? You have done so much already. I can go up ahead and find Neji and Shikamaru-kun." Gaara shook his head.

"That's all right, Lee. I'd like to be of more use to you," he replied in an end-of-the-matter sort of tone. Lee had to frown at that last statement.

"Gaara-kun, please do not speak of yourself in such a manner. I am not your father, nor am I the elders of Sunagakure. To me, you are Gaara the person, not Gaara the weapon." Gaara flashed Lee a rare smile. He had quite the friend in Rock Lee after all. Lee could not help but to smile in return.

However, Lee and Gaara had no more time to continue this exchange. For at that very moment, they had come upon a battlefield in the canyon. The damage was unreal. Cliffs decimated and ground into nothing but dust and pebbles. Even the earth was scorched. Shadows of all shapes and sizes, some formed like amorphous blobs, others like hands, and some even looked grotesquely human, all were burned into the walls of the canyon, imprinted there for eternity from when Shikamaru, obviously too stressed to think, poured far too much chakra into them. Blood littered the walls illuminated by the starlight above them, painted onto the walls of the canyon almost childishly.

"Oh God…" Lee uttered, eyes wide in disbelief at the horror of the scene. He felt a hand grasp his firmly, lightly squeezing it. He turned to find Gaara, gazing at him with empathy. The redhead nodded. Never letting go of Lee's hand, he led the taijutsu-specialist through the canyon, looking for signs of life.

"Do you see them anywhere, Lee?" Lee simply shook his head, too shocked to speak. If he looked very carefully at the towering cliffs, he could see handprints left over from failed attacks, Neji's handprints. Near them was his lovely Neji's blood, dripping down from the ghosts of his hands from when the coarseness of the rock scraped off his skin like sandpaper. "Lee, you're shaking. It's okay. We'll find them. They'll be okay. We just need to…to…" Gaara trailed off, for in the distance, across the desolate canyon floor, were three figures lying close together near a cliff. Gaara let go of Lee's hand.

And they ran.

And the closer they got, the more macabre the scene before them became. It was not until Lee and Gaara were mere feet in front of the three before the true horror of the sight began to sink in.

Sasuke was on the ground in front of them. His throat had been slit sloppily, done in someone's haste. The person must have not had the heart to watch as they did it. His bleeding had stopped, heart no longer beating. Sasuke's obsidian eyes were now glassy, staring blankly up at the sky, but then again, Sasuke could not really gaze at anything anymore. The deed, that terrible deed, had been done. Still, Sasuke's lifeless form was the least heart-wrenching of the three.

For Lee had looked at Shikamaru once, and could not bear to gaze again. Shikamaru, such a calm, placating force, one of the kindest people that Lee could ever hope to meet, was in the fetal position, alternating between laughing uncontrollably and sobbing his eyes out.

It did not take much thought to realize that he had gone mad.

And finally, to Shikamaru's right was the one person that Lee could not bear to see like this: Neji. Neji's body was covered in scorch marks and small lacerations, with one horrid, gaping wound in his stomach. It oozed out blood slowly, menacingly. His hair was strewn freely about his body, curse seal uncovered for all the world to see. He was paler than the moonlight that streamed down onto his still form, the dark circles under his eyes even more defined than usual. A small sliver of blood ran down from his slightly parted lips. It was difficult to tell if the brunette was even breathing anymore. And at the sight of him, Lee fell to his knees, eyes so very wide.

How did it come to this?


	2. Past: Neji and Lee

***I'm going to ACen tomorrow. I'm dressing as Conan from **_**Detective Conan**_**/ **_**Case Closed**_**! It's gonna be sweet! Anyway, here's chapter two of the fic. I haven't gotten any feedback from chapter 1 yet, but…screw it. I'm bored. I also finished my Meaning of Life project for Great Books (yeah, it's exactly what it sounds like). I did a puppet show. It was EPIC…except for the fact that I hadn't really worked out the logistics of puppeteering. I should've just learned how to used chakra strings. Would've made the entire ordeal much easier. Anyway, onto the chapter!**

**Notes: Ino and Neji are friends in this, though it has little to no basis in canon. I love the way Torib0o writes them together, so I decided to give it a shot myself! Also, Kurenai had the baby, and I decided to make the baby a girl. Her name is Will as in "Will of Fire." I thought it was rather appropriate.**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 2: Past—Neji and Lee**

_Lee could not believe the team that he ended up with for this mission. It was an A-Class, not the worst that could be expected of course, but still enough to rattle some newly-promoted Jounin. Lee, being unable to mold chakra, could not pass his Jounin exams (though Tsunade and Gai were trying to pull as many strings as they could get their hands on). However, he was not the only Chuunin on the team. No, in fact there were two others: Inuzuka Kiba and Akimichi Choji. Nara Shikamaru, promoted to special-Jounin earlier that year, and advisor to the Hokage earlier that month, was set to lead the team, but that was not the surprising part. None other than Hyuuga Hinata, was second-in-command to Shikamaru on this mission. With help from her cousin (and the love of Lee's life), she was able to reach Jounin level just before her sixteenth birthday. _

_Many had been surprised—shocked even—at Neji's insistence to teach Hinata everything that he knew. However, there were a few people who knew that this so-called "change of heart," made perfect sense. Lee was one of those people. Neji…he did not know what the future had in store for him (such irony); he knew that he would probably never have a child, so he wanted to pass on his knowledge in other ways. He vowed to train Hinata so well that her name would be known throughout the Five Great Shinobi villages as a force to be reckoned with. And it would seem that his training was paying off: Hinata had been an invaluable asset to their team this time._

_Considering, it had been a fairly smooth mission (no unexpected twists or turns), and Lee very much enjoyed his experience with his old friends. Still, when all was said and done, he preferred working with his old team, Gai-sensei, Tenten, and…_

_Lee shook himself out of that train of thought. No, his thoughts were straying far too close to what he never wanted to contemplate. Never._

_Neji would be fine. Lee would make sure of it._

_Before Lee could continue to berate himself for allowing his thoughts to stray, Akamaru's loud bark startled Lee out of his reverie. _

"_You could sure say that again, Akamaru; I'm starved!" called out Kiba. Their makeshift team shared warm smiles. The Inuzuka grinned. "Oi, whaddya guys say to grabbing a bite once we're back in Konoha? We're close; I can almost smell Shino and Kurenai-sensei." Hinata giggled softly at the thought. _

"_Yeah, it's been a long mission, hasn't it?" added Choji. "I'm sure our Yakiniku place misses us, right, Shika? And Ino, too, of course." Shikamaru chuckled._

"_Of course, once we're home, she'll be screaming her head off about how much she wanted us back in Konoha." Shikamaru shook his head in a mock-dissenting way. "Troublesome girl, that one." Choji grinned back, knowing that his friend was in a great mood to be joking while running at top speed. _

"_How ' bout you, Hinata?" continued Kiba. "Where're you gonna go first?" Hinata smiled sheepishly but warmly._

"_Oh…um…dinner sounds n-nice. I…w-would like to visit Shino-kun and Kurenai-sensei and W-will-chan…of course. Oh and m-maybe N-n-naruto-k-kun. Oh and o-of course, Neji-nii-san." Different rank, same Hinata. Still, the violet-haired girl was about to ask Lee of his plans, but before she could begin to speak again, Kiba interrupted. _

"_Hey, how 'bout we all grab some Yakiniku when we get back? We can bring Ino, Shino, and Naruto along." Akamaru barked good-naturedly, as if to say, "Great idea!" There was a collective murmur of agreement from the group._

"_What about you, Lee?" asked Choji amiably. Once again, Lee found himself startled out of his thoughts, except this time, everyone was looking at him, eager for a response. _

"_Well," he began softly. "I would love to, but I cannot. I have someone waiting for me at home." Hinata smiled comprehensively._

"_Oh? What's this? Who's your girlfriend, Lee?" Kiba asked, raising his eyebrows suggestively. Lee, not expecting this, simply sputtered in response. _

"_Oh well…um, it is…um…er…"_

"_Kiba," cut in Shikamaru. "Don't badger him." _

"_Hey, I'm not badgering! I'm just asking is all."_

"_Well, obviously, he's uncomfortable. If he doesn't want to tell you, he doesn't have to. So stop being troublesome."_

"_I'll stop being so troublesome when you stop being so snarky!" At this, Choji burst out laughing._

"_Oh, that's a great comeback! I've gotta tell Ino that one for the next time he calls us troublesome."_

"_Please don't," replied Shikamaru. _

"_Besides," continued Kiba, "you're only saying that cuz you probably already know!" Shikamaru raised an eyebrow._

"_Well…I do, but that's beside the point."_

"_Wait, you KNOW?" cried Lee. Shikamaru blushed in response, quite out-of-character for the Nara._

"_Uh…well…I, uh, walked in on you two while you were making-out once…"_

"_Was it hot?" asked Kiba. Shikamaru glared at the dog-nin. _

"_Kiba, if I said yes, would that make this situation any less awkward?" Kiba said nothing. "Exactly. But the point is, whether or not Lee wants to reveal the identity of this person is up to him."_

"_Thank you, Shikamaru-kun," the addressed smiled, "but that is all right. You are all my friends. I can trust you with this information." Kiba looked eager, while Choji just smiled. "I am dating Neji, and I have been for a couple years now…"_

"_WHAT?" cried Kiba. Choji's smile never faltered. "Jesus!" continued the Inuzuka. "No offense, Lee, but how'd someone like you end up with someone like that?" Lee blinked, confused._

"_I…beg your pardon?"_

"_I mean," Kiba began again, "he's hot and you're…you."_

"_I am…not entirely sure how to respond to this…"_

"_I didn't realize you're bi, Kiba," cut in Choji good-naturedly._

"_Hey! Just because I can admire the attractiveness of other men doesn't make me bisexual. It just makes me awesome like that. Besides, Choji, Shikamaru, you guys have to admit he's pretty hot."_

"_Can't argue with you there," replied Choji._

"_Yeah." This was becoming a little too much information for Lee._

"_As much as I agree with you three…I would prefer if you did not comment on my boyfriend's attractiveness right in front of me."_

"_Fair enough," conceded Shikamaru. _

"_Fine," said Kiba, though he did sound rather disappointed. _

_Still, as entertaining as the conversation around her was, Hinata seemed rather anxious. Shikamaru was the first to notice._

"_Oi, Hinata, you all right back there?"_

"_Oh, yes…Sh-Shikamaru-kun. I-it's just…Kiba-kun…Choji-kun…Shikamaru-kun," all three turned to look her in the eye, "p-please don't tell anyone about L-lee-kun and Neji-nii-san. Th-though most in my clan w-would be all right with their being seriously involved…some e-elders wouldn't. Nii-san could be in danger…were they to find out." Lee's brow furrowed. It was true. Such was the reason why Neji wanted to keep their relationship low-key in the first place._

_Kiba, Choji, and Shikamaru nodded. _

"_Don't worry, Hinata-chan," Choji assured. "I won't tell anyone."_

"_Same here," added Kiba. "You have my word."_

"_Of course," finished Shikamaru. "You don't have anything to worry about."_

_By the time that the team had lapsed back into more casual conversation, they had already returned to Konoha. They said their quick goodbyes, each heading to see the loved-ones that they had sorely missed over the past few weeks. Kiba and Choji headed to find Ino and Shino to have a late dinner with. Hinata stayed behind to tell Lee that she would come by to say here hellos to "Neji-nii-san" later, and went off to join them. _

_Shikamaru took Lee aside. _

"_Is something the matter, Shikamaru-kun?" Lee gazed deep into Shikamaru's eyes, those amber pools unnerved him. Within Shikamaru's gaze seemed to be the creation and the destruction, fate, freedom, love, hate, and God. He knew those eyes: the eyes of a genius. The eyes of someone who sees everything. _"It must be so hard," _thought Lee. _

"_How's Neji?" he asked bluntly, with a rare-anxious gaze. Then, Lee knew. He knew everything. Shikamaru was worried beyond belief about Neji. He had been for a long time, and the sole reason being that Shikamaru had suffered a mission gone wrong with Neji. They had ended up together in the hollow of a large tree, surrounded by enemy-shinobi. All that Shikamaru was able to do was clutch onto Neji who had long ago lost consciousness. Shikamaru had watched as Neji's lungs nearly collapsed, as his fever skyrocketed to ludicrous, brain-deadening levels, as the pretty brunette violently coughed and gurgled up blood, retched, all in Shikamaru's shaking terrified arms. _

_Shikamaru had just once seen Neji at his worst, and he never wanted to see his friend like that ever again. _

_Lee's eyes softened. "He is all right, Shikamaru-kun. Thank you for your concern though. It is good to know that you worry for him almost as much as I do." Shikamaru managed a small nod, but he still did not seem satisfied with the response. Lee noticed this. "Shikamaru-kun…if it makes you feel any better, if something changes, you will be the first to know." Again, the Nara nodded, though this time seeming oddly contented. _

"_You should go see him, now; I bet he missed you." Lee smiled that bright smile of his at Shikamaru. _

"_Yes, and you go have fun with your teammates. Do not worry; you can trust me to take care of Neji." _

_With a small smile, Shikamaru nodded. "Yeah," he said, "yeah, I can."_

_About ten minutes after the group had completely separated (planning to meet later in order to write the mission report), Lee finally made it to the apartment building. It was not ridiculously late (only nine or ten at night), but still, the lights to Lee's apartment were dimmed, if not off entirely. Neji should have been there. After all, Neji had moved in completely very soon after their relationship had officially started (at first, he had just stayed at Lee's apartment most of the time and gone home at night or after a few days, but one day, Lee found him waiting outside his door in the rain. The Hyuuga had cried his eyes out on Lee's shoulder, and Lee led him in to the apartment, no questions asked. Since then, the brunette had stayed and never left). Though he would never tell Neji about it, Lee had come to think of the adorable Hyuuga as his sweet little housewife. Ever since that mission with Shikamaru, Neji could no longer perform his duties as a shinobi, and he was getting worse and worse by the day. Lee was of course, happy to pamper his poor sweet brunette, but Neji would never allow it. He believed that he had to earn his keep somehow, so he took on the household duties (cooking, cleaning, and running errands around Konoha). If Neji had not been getting weaker and weaker by the day, Lee would have called their relationship perfectly normal. But, alas, Neji could never be the same person again, and it tormented him. _

_By the time that Lee was done contemplating his relationship, he was already inside the dark house. He lightly toed his shoes off and snuck over to the living room. "Neji," he called softly, lovingly. "Neji, my love, I am home." No response. Lee was getting worried, but then, Lee peered over the living room couch, only to find the sweetest of sights before him. Neji was lying fast asleep on the couch, a book half open on his chest. The brunette looked so relaxed, peaceful, like an innocent child. "You were trying to wait up for me, were you not?" he whispered gently to the sleeping Hyuuga. He smiled warmly and sincerely, before placing a feather-soft kiss on the brunette's forehead. "So cute," he cooed. Neji mumbled softly and unintelligibly in response. Smiling brightly, Lee placed the book on the table and lightly pulled a blanket over him. He absentmindedly put a hand on his forehead. _

"_Oh, thank God, your fever has gone down. It was so high before I left that I almost could not bear to leave you." The taijutsu-specialist kissed him again. "Sleep well, my love; you need it." Lee was about to leave to allow his sweet Neji more time to rest, but somehow, Neji could sense him leaving. The Hyuuga moaned softly. "Neji, are you…awake?" _

_Bleary white eyes fluttered open. Neji blinked a few times, looking up at Lee. After a moment, the Hyuuga seemed to recognize him. Neji smiled beautifully at the black-haired boy, so much so that Lee thought he might melt right there. "Welcome home," he managed softly. Neji slowly pushed himself into a sitting position, but Lee was too mesmerized by the brunette's radiance to notice. _"Kiba-kun has a point," _thought Lee._ "How on Earth did I manage to end up with someone like him?"

"_Lee?" Lee shook himself out of that train of thought. It did not matter how Neji ended up with the taijutsu-specialist. All that mattered was that Neji, the most beautiful creature on Earth, was his, and Lee intended to keep it that way. He smiled brilliantly at his brunette before climbing onto the couch beside him. The sofa was small; the only way for them both to fit was for Lee to lie on top of Neji. But the latter did not mind in the least, he simply snuggled closer to Lee, letting out a contented sigh. "I missed this," he murmured. _

"_You have no idea," countered Lee jokingly. Neji beamed, lightly kissing Lee's collar. "Sometimes," continued Lee softly, dreamily, "I want to quit being a shinobi and get a different job, just so I can stay in Konoha all of the time…with you." Opalescent eyes widened. _

"_No! But Lee, what about your dream? What about showing everyone that a even person with no ninjutsu or genjutsu abilities can be a brilliant shinobi?" Lee blinked, surprised at his love's sudden outburst._

"_Neji, my love, are you really the same little boy who laughed in my face when I first told Gai-sensei my dream?" Neji stared for a moment as if thinking, considering Lee's comment in all seriousness. _

"_I guess I'm not at all who I used to be, am I?" he mused. He turned and gazed soberly at the black-haired boy. "I always wanted to be your friend, Lee, as corny as it sounds. But, when I was younger, I was so…lost in the darkness. Every time I wanted to tell you how much I wanted to get to know you…as Lee the person, not Lee the hot-blooded drop-out, it was like…the darkness rose and took control of me and turned all of the loving things I wanted to say into hateful things. If Naruto hadn't freed me…we may never have…" Lee kissed him, pulling him into the powerful embrace. _

"_Sometimes," he began, "I hate Naruto-kun." Neji blinked. It was such an out-of-character statement for Lee. "I knew that you were in darkness," Lee continued. He began to stroke Neji's soft brown hair. "I always knew. I would try over and over again to bring you into the light, but I never could. Never. Sometimes, I even made it worse for you. Then, Naruto came, and without even trying, he completely changed you. Changed you into my lovely Neji of light, and sometimes, I hate him for it. Hate him because he did what I had longed to do for years." Neji smiled sadly, snuggling close to Lee. _

"_Well, Lee, you know what? Naruto may have been the one to change me, but in case you haven't noticed, I'm in your arms now, not his. It wasn't until after we became chuunin that it happened with you. Lee it was _you_ who made me fall for you, not Naruto. One day, I started to feel your touches so much, as if every brush of skin would set me ablaze. You started to make me laugh when no one else could. Sometimes, when we were camping out at night, I would curl closer to you because of your warmth, your smell. I fell in love with _you_, Lee, no one else." They were silent for a moment more. Lee shifted, so that Neji was lying on him instead of the other way around. The Hyuuga, again, sighed happily. _

"_How have you been feeling, my sweet?" When Neji stiffened, Lee knew that something was very wrong. "Neji?" he called softly. The brunette simply shook his head. Lee kissed him lovingly. "Please tell me what it is that is bothering you," he continued. Neji again shook his head. "Neji," he began again, tone a bit more stern. "What happened?" _

_Neji attempted to stand up. "Oh, it's nothing, Lee. Really. Let me make you something to eat instead. I'm sure you're hungry after such a long mission. What would you like? I'll make any—"_

_Lee pulled Neji back into his arms. The brunette fell back on top of him. Lightly, he pulled the blanket over them, kissing his forehead. "Please, my love," he admonished. "Please do not hide your pain from me. I love you so much. I wish for you to tell me when you are feeling ill. Please, _please_, tell me." As Neji gazed into those determined and concerned onyx eyes, he knew that he could not lie to his Lee. _

"_I…I," he began softly, nervously. "I've…I've reached the next stage." Lee's brow furrowed. _

"_Neji?" he called, concerned and confused. Neji took a deep breath. He buried his face in Lee's chest, wanting nothing more than to disappear and never have to tell Lee about what happened while he was gone. _

_Lee noticed that Neji's grip on him was tightening from nerves. Lee gave him a gentle smile, kissing him soothingly. "Shh, oh, Neji, it is all right. Do not worry. You can tell me anything." Neji could not help but to melt into Lee's touch. "Please, tell me what happened." _

_Neji did not meet Lee's warm onyx eyes; instead he hid his face between Lee and the couch, not wanting to show the black-haired boy his anxious expression. The taijutsu specialist sighed, planting a kiss on the top of Neji's head. "Please, Neji. For me?" Neji stiffened, before stilling, completely lost in thought. Finally, he relaxed, sighing. _

"_A couple days after you left…" he began softly. Lee nodded, kissing his forehead and wrapping his arms comfortingly around the smaller boy. "I was getting ready to meet Ino-san. Shikamaru told me that aside from Choji, she was the best cook that he knew. I wanted to learn to cook something new to surprise you when you got back." Lee let the softest of smiles cross his face. It did his heart good to know that Neji cared enough to waste energy on "welcome home" meals. Lee kissed Neji once again. _

"_And then what happened, my love?" he asked, pulling Neji even closer still and stroking his hair. Neji sighed longingly, curling against Lee's warmth. _

"_I was getting everything ready and…suddenly, I was on the kitchen floor. I don't know. One minute, I'm getting everything out of the cabinets that Ino-san and I would need, the next, I'm lying face down on the ground." Lee's arms tightened their hold on Neji, but the latter was far too oriented in his memory to notice. "I don't remember what happened for a while, but when I woke up, the first thing I remember was Ino-san. She was so happy I had woken that she hugged me." Lee managed a small smile. He knew how much Neji craved human contact sometimes. It was good that he could find that in Ino. "Then, Tsunade-sama entered the room. She looked back at Hahaue's old case file, and based on both of our symptoms, she found that the disease goes in stages. The first stage is stress fevers, which lasts until puberty. During puberty, stage two begins: the stress fevers worsen and occur more often, digestion and respiration begin to malfunction, the muscle tremors begin, and migraines set in. This lasts until late teens and early adulthood. Then comes stage three: it starts with higher fevers, trouble with the digestive system, and sporadic loss of consciousness, but it eventually leads to loss of cognitive function, emotional control, and memory, muscle weakness and pain, uncontrolled, jerky motion, loss of coordination and balance, and…and…loss of…sight…" Neji could not take it any more. He buried his face in the crook of Lee's neck. "Lee! I'm going blind. Oh, God, I'm going to go blind!" He began to cry. Lee was in shock. He could have never thought of a worse disease for Neji to have. It truly was slowly taking away everything that the brunette had. So much so that it was all Neji could do to cry his eyes out on Lee's shoulder. _

_When Neji's sobs became uncontrollable, Lee knew that it was time to step in. He sat up and pulled Neji into his lap, rocking the poor thing soothingly, back and forth, back and forth. "Shh, oh my Neji. Shh, do not cry. Please, when you cry it feels as though my whole world is shattering. Please, no matter what happens to you Neji, no matter how sick you get, no matter what functions you lose, I will always love you and care for you. There is no force in the world that can stop me." However, this did not comfort Neji; instead, he only seemed to cry more._

"_No, Lee, there is…one…" he whispered, wrapping his arms around Lee's neck and shoulders. Lee clutched the brunette to his body as if Neji would simply vanish without a moment's notice. Who knows? Perhaps he would. "In a few years," elaborated Neji. "I'll move onto stage four." Neji simply shivered at the thought, prompting Lee to kiss him lightly. "Stage four…it's…Lee, stage four is progressive organ failure…everything from my kidneys to my lungs…" Lee's eyes grew so wide that Neji thought that they might just burst. He pulled Neji close. Progressive organ failure. If Lee's surgery from all of those years ago was against the odds, Neji's illness still made it look like a guaranteed success. The chances of Neji surviving it would be unbelievable, like winning the lottery and being struck by lightning in the same week. In other words, Neji, his wonderful, lovely, little Neji, was looking at nothing other than a pure, bonafide death sentence. _

_Lee began to cry too._

_For hours, Neji and Lee cried in each other's arms. Lee refused to let Neji go. Never. He would never let Neji out of his arms; whether it be for a mission or for death itself, he promised to never let him go. As Lee whispered this to him, Neji just shook his head, shifted in Lee's arms again, and cried even more. _

_Eventually, Lee ended up sitting on the couch, Neji's head resting in his lap. He watched as the brunette stared with empty, cried-out, white eyes at the ceiling. His gaze was so forlorn, so meaningless, as if he had somehow lost all purpose. Lee was not sure how to comfort him. Pulling Neji into his lap, kissing him and whispering sweet nothings…that would do nothing for the Hyuuga (not that the taijutsu-specialist had not tried). He considered perhaps lulling his sweetheart to sleep and letting him sleep away the tears, the worries. Would that help him? Would he feel better? Would it make him worse? Before Lee could truly contemplate the answer to these questions, Neji's gaze met his. He almost could not bear to look at those vacant, bleak, red-rimmed eyes, but as always, Neji's gaze was hypnotic, mesmerizing._

_Neji grabbed Lee's shirt collar and pulled the black-haired boy in for a long, passionate, and needy kiss. Tongues danced and clashed. Neji allowed Lee to probe his mouth endlessly searching, comforting. Lips and teeth met, tongues collided. Hands made their way into silky hair, up and down backs, and around faces, while torsos were crushed together, fitting perfectly like puzzle pieces. They were whole. They were one. _

_They broke apart panting, Lee looking deep into Neji's beautiful eyes, those pale cheeks tinted with rose, those soft, luscious lips. The brunette was flawless. "Lee," came that lovely voice. "Make me feel alive." He was pleading. Neji needed this, needed it more than life itself. "Make me yours." Lee could do nothing but stare for moments. This beauty, this creature of unfathomable, godlike, perfection, was his. His alone. Neji wanted no one else, only Lee, always Lee. _

_A deep kiss was the only response he could muster._

_For Neji. _

***Much longer this time around. I hope you enjoyed it!**


	3. Present: Gaara

***And again we return to the present. I'd just like to thank Hanai-kun for his/her lovely reviews (sorry I never got back to you on the second one, btw, I got it after I was ready to update)! Anyway, even if you don't review, I hope whoever's reading this is enjoying it! That's the most important part, right? Well, anyway, I don't have much to say, so have fun reading this chapter!**

**Notes: Gaara addresses people a bit more formally in this, because as Kazekage, I figure he'd have to, right? As for the Gaara-Shikamaru chemistry thing…well, I figure if anyone would be able to understand Shikamaru in his current state of insanity, it would be Gaara. Also, when Lee mentions "Chifuyu"…well, if you don't figure it out now, you'll find out in one of the next chapters. **

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 3: Present—Gaara**

Gaara took a sideways glance at Lee. The taijutsu-specialist gazed at Neji as if in a trance. He was on his knees, unable to move or speak. Too shocked and horrified to go on. It would seem that the redhead was on his own from here. How similar this whole situation turned out to be to their first mission to retrieve Sasuke.

He shook his head. How much trouble could one man cause? Shikamaru's group would have all lost their lives the first time around, if Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro had not shown up in the nick of time. Gaara and Lee almost lost their own lives, but Lady Luck had helped them there. Now, look where it left them. Two dead. One unhinged (make that two, with the way Lee was acting). One relatively intact (and he used the word "intact" very, _very _loosely). And eleven unaccounted for.

Gaara sighed. He had faith in his friends, but still, he could do nothing but pray that his siblings got out of this alive. And Naruto. Gaara could not bear to lose Naruto, ever.

A broken sob snapped Gaara back into reality. He could not stay lost in thought. He had Shikamaru and Lee to take care of. He started with the shinobi in the fetal position on the ground. The redhead began to walk over, wincing as his body was jarred with each step (he had one hell of a headache, after all). Gaara knelt down beside Shikamaru, gently placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Nara-kun? Can you hear me? Are you hurt?" Shikamaru just continued to sob uncontrollably.

Then, their eyes met.

And Gaara saw them. The eyes of a man who has had his whole life fall to pieces right in front of him. The eyes of a madman. Eyes that craved both life and death, love and hate, human warmth and cruelty. Gaara knew those eyes. Gaara used to have those eyes. And as he looked at Shikamaru's shaking, vulnerable form, he could only see himself, as he used to be.

He tried a smile. "Nara-kun?" The other seemed to respond, gazing into Gaara's bright green eyes. Gaara knew what Shikamaru needed, the same thing that he had needed all those years ago: human contact. He pulled the genius into a warm hug, murmuring nothing more than, "It's okay." Shikamaru stiffened. "It's okay, Nara-kun," he repeated in little more than a whisper. "It's okay." Shikamaru broke down and cried hysterically on Gaara's shoulder. Gaara just nodded, whispering words of comfort when he could.

There was a groan.

But this sound came from neither Shikamaru nor Lee. Eyes widening, Gaara turned towards the source of the noise. There, to his left, was Neji, looking haggard and pale, like hell warmed over, but obviously alive. His breath was faint but there; Gaara could make out the small rise and fall of the brunette's chest as he took in shallow breath after breath. His body remained relatively still, but his expression was strained: he was in a lot of pain.

Gaara looked back to Lee. It would seem that Lee was too out-of-it to notice that his husband was still alive.

"Lee!" called the redhead, as he comfortingly stroked Shikamaru's hair. "Snap out of it! I think Neji-san is alive."

This seemed to do the trick, as Lee shook himself out of his daze and crawled his way over to the brunette.

Lee gazed at the Hyuuga, pale and covered in blood. Unable to stop himself, Lee brushed a stray hair out of the beautiful man's face. However, as soon as Lee's hand brushed the brunette's forehead, Lee could have cried in happiness. Neji was running a fever: he was alive. "Neji?" Lee attempted to call. No response. "Oh, my love, you are a mess. Please, speak to me; let me know that you are all right." Still no response. Brow furrowing, Lee opted to pull Neji into his arms, hoping that the warmth of another would help him to stir. He lightly kissed the poor feverish thing's forehead. Neji simply shivered. "Neji, please. Please wake up. For me?" Neji moaned, unable to regain consciousness. "Please, love, if not for me, then for our little one at home. Please, Neji, you must wake up…for Chifuyu." Then, as if by some higher power, Neji stirred. White eyes opened slightly, barely focusing.

"Chi…fuyu?" Lee managed a smile. "Wh-wh-" Neji was unable to finish, as he burst into a coughing fit that seemed to rattle his entire body. Lee's eyes widened as blood began to pour from the brunette's mouth. He clutched the Hyuuga's shaking form to himself.

"Shhh, oh, my Neji, please do not try to talk." However, the aforementioned did not appear to be listening.

"Wh-where is sh-she?" he managed. Lee kissed him gently.

"She is home in Konoha, my love. She is safe." Neji nodded, content with the answer. He let his head fall onto Lee's shoulder, completely worn out. Lee turned to Gaara. "Gaara-kun, he is not well. We must hurry."

"Okay," affirmed the redhead, heading towards the taijutsu-specialist. Shikamaru was well enough to walk, but he needed the Kazekage's support (support that Gaara almost needed himself; still, like any good shinobi, he shrugged it off). "We'll probably find our friends on the way…" Gaara began weakly. He paused as he passed Sasuke's body. His face took on an air of melancholy. "I feel bad…just leaving him here like this. It just doesn't seem right."

"After we get Shikamaru-kun and Neji the help that they need," began Lee, "we can return here with Naruto-kun and Sakura-san and give him a proper burial." And with a curt nod from Gaara, the two were off.

As they ran through the landscape, Lee could not help but notice how different Shikamaru was. The Nara was extremely quiet, forlorn, and refused to make eye contact. Every once in a while, the taijutsu specialist would ask, "Shikamaru-kun, are you doing all right?" But Shikamaru would not respond until Gaara repeated the question. At his prompting, the Nara would manage a small nod. Lee had to wonder why Shikamaru would only answer when Gaara asked, but he supposed that it was just one of those things.

Neji's condition was just as difficult to discern. Soon after they had begun to travel, Neji looked up from Lee's arms with large opalescent eyes and whispered, "I know you." Lee simply smiled and replied with a soft, "Yes." Neji sighed and leaned closer to Lee. "I can't remember very well," he continued softly, slowly, "but whoever you are, I think I love you very much." Lee just murmured, "Yes, my love, and I you." Seemingly happy with the response, Neji allowed his eyes to close and fell into a coma-like sleep.

***Another short chapter; the "present" ones will start getting longer as the story progresses. And the pieces will start to fall into place. Well, my friends, thanks for the support!**


	4. Past: Shikamaru and Neji

***Well, I should be doing my Psych hw, but I'm just far too lazy (senioritis, man). I'd much rather update anyway! I'm thinking of updating Neighborhood too. I've got a chapter written that I've been neglecting to update for a few days now. Whatever. Anyway, I'm in a great mood today (I've been watching lots of LK on youtube), so let's do this thing! Chapter 4. Hope you guys enjoy.**

**Notes: Shikamaru and Neji are also good friends in this; they'd make a great pair those two, even if they're only just friends. Also, I've never actually had cold somen, but it sounded good, and it's probably something you'd like to eat in the summer. And, btw, I really have no idea how shogi works so…please excuse the vagueness around that area (seriously I'm just like, "Shikamaru moved the shogi piece…yeah").**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 4: Past—Shikamaru and Neji**

_It had been a few weeks since Neji's nineteenth birthday—the third of July. Neji had never been a huge fan of his birthday. It was never celebrated. As a Branch House member, it used to mean that he had gone another year without being slaughtered by the Main House. As a shinobi, it used to mean that he had gone another year without dying in combat, but things had changed since those days. Neji had run away from his clan and eloped with the love of his life, Rock Lee. He was no longer considered to be a Hyuuga; he was kicked out after the elders found out about his relationship with Lee; his name had been burned off of the Hyuuga family tapestry, and he was never to return. Even so, Neji did not mind. In fact, his first course of action as a "free" man had been to take the name Namikaze in honor of his dear mother. Namikaze Neji. His parents would have been proud. _

_Still, since he was a Namikaze, a birthday now meant that he had gone another year without deteriorating to the point of death. He was still alive and kicking, but barely._

_Neji felt something on the horizon. The fourth stage of the disease was looming over his head. He was just a couple years away from his mother's turning point, when all had gone to hell. Every birthday was just another reminder that soon, Neji would begin to experience a slow and painful death, and his poor, dear Lee would have to watch all of it. _

_Nevertheless, there was one thing that made Neji's birthdays wonderful: waking up in a warm bed, in the only true home he had ever had. Having his sweet Lee lean over him, lightly kiss him and smile. "Happy Birthday, my love," he would whisper, and all would be well with the world. True, Neji hated his birthdays, but he loved his Lee. _

_However, that was only on the back of his mind now (being a few weeks later). He was more focused on his journey to see Shikamaru at his apartment. The Nara had been inviting him over a lot lately. He had said that he just wanted a shogi partner, but Neji knew better: Shikamaru was worried about him, so much so that he could not help but to check in on him whenever he could. Lee was off on another mission when the Nara had asked earlier that day; Neji thought that the company would be nice. _

_He had gone to sleep the night before, happy that he would have someone to talk to while Lee was gone. It was lonely being one of the only people in his age group that did not take regular missions. Neji was practically a retired-shinobi at this point (though he was occasionally given missions around the village). But that morning, he had woken feeling awful. His head pounded like a drum, steady and rhythmic, harmonizing with his heartbeat. He had vomited up his breakfast, and his shaking had worsened. Luckily his breathing was normal, but still his dizziness had increased, indicating that his fever was on the rise. And worst of all, his sight was beginning to fail him. His field of vision would warp and fade, making it difficult to see even two feet in front of him, but it came and went: sometimes, he felt completely blind, while other times his vision would be back to its perfect twenty-twenty. _

_Even through this pain, Neji wanted to see Shikamaru, so he decided to force himself to head over to the Nara's apartment. The journey was horrid. He felt as if he was tuning in and out of reality as he walked. He would often find himself lost, having turned the wrong direction a long ways back. _

_Eventually, he found the correct apartment and courteously knocked. A wave of nausea hit him. Neji felt on the brink of collapse. By the time Shikamaru finally opened the door, the brunette collapsed into his open arms. The Nara helped the other to the ground, hoping to aid his friend in need. "Hey, hang in there," whispered Shikamaru. "God, I'm going to your house next time. It's not worth getting you this sick every time I want a shogi partner." Neji found himself being pulled into the living room. The brunette mumbled incoherently, as Shikamaru attempted to lay him on the couch. "Shh, shh, sh, Neji, you're okay. I got you. You're in good hands." Neji nodded lightly, head pounding from sheer exhaustion. He let out a sigh. "Well, looks like shogi's outta the question tonight." Neji shook his head vigorously, or at least, as vigorously as someone in his position could. "Do you really want to play that badly?" The brunette managed a small smile._

"_No, but I know you do." Shikamaru opened his mouth to retaliate, but closed it, realizing that he was dealing with someone who was secretly just as stubborn as Rock Lee or Uzumaki Naruto. The Nara sighed._

"_All right, all right, we'll play, but _you_ have to rest first. Take a nap; then we'll play." Neji inwardly shrugged, deciding that Shikamaru's conditions were fair enough. _

"_Okay," he murmured. Still, the Nara practically forced him to lie back down before grabbing a blanket from the other room to cover Neji with._

"_Get some sleep," he continued, to which Neji nodded. Shikamaru turned to give Neji some space, but Neji spoke first._

"_Shikamaru…thank you." The genius just smiled, knowing that it was answer enough._

_When Neji awoke from his "nap," he was surprised to find that the sun was setting. Shikamaru had had a point: to have slept for this long, Neji really must have been tired. He let out a soft sigh, readjusting himself to the waking world. Still, the brunette was a bit worried; he could not hear Shikamaru moving about the apartment. Everything was quiet, as if the coming night had silenced even the insects. _

_Stretching out, Neji decided that it would be best to search the apartment for signs of the Nara, just in case something had happened. If Shikamaru had gone out, he would have at least left Neji a note. He slowly stood as to not dizzy himself. He moved to look around; however, he did not have to look far, as Shikamaru was only a few feet away, lying on the floor with his back to Neji. The slow rise and fall of the Nara's chest could mean only that he was sleeping. Neji could not help the fond smile that crossed his face. Shikamaru must have been worried enough to not want to leave the room, but since nothing of interest had really occurred, the genius simply fell asleep. _

_Neji grabbed the blanket and a spare pillow from the couch. Shikamaru may have been a special jounin, but so was Neji. The brunette probably could not move the Nara to a bed without waking him, but pulling a blanket over him in his own home might not be pushing it. Neji crept over to the sleeping boy (really more of a man now that he was to turn eighteen in a month or so), and ever-so-gently lifted his head just enough to place a pillow under it. He then pulled the blanket over the other and stepped away, contented with his work. "Sleep well, Shikamaru," Neji whispered. _

_Neji then made his way into the kitchen to look through Shikamaru's cabinets and refrigerator. "He'll probably be hungry when he wakes up," the brunette mused as he scoured the cabinets for ingredients. "Let's see…__ Oh perfect! It looks like I can make cold somen." With a satisfied nod, Neji began to cook._

_Shikamaru awoke a little later, surprised to find himself covered with a blanket. Suddenly, it clicked: Neji. The Nara smiled, happy that the brunette felt well enough to get out of bed (couch in this case) and walk around. In fact, Shikamaru could have sworn that he smelled something cooking, something good. Shikamaru had not smelled home-cooking like this since he left his parents' house. With a sigh, the Nara forced himself up to see what his friend was up to. _

_Shikamaru rubbed the sleep out of his eyes before getting up and heading over to the kitchen. He did not go out of his way to hide his presence from Neji (as giving a shinobi a "pleasant surprise" has been known to be fatal). The brunette turned almost immediately after Shikamaru entered the kitchen. "How was your nap?" asked Neji with a smile. However, the addressed did not respond; instead, he crossed the kitchen to the stove and began scrutinizing Neji, as if searching for anything out of place. The white-eyed man frowned in confusion, unsure of what to make of the gesture, but when Shikamaru finally placed a hand on his forehead, he understood. "Fever?" he asked the Nara._

_Shikamaru shrugged, "A little, it's better though." Neji gave a small nod._

_Without further ado, Neji finished up the cooking and gave Shikamaru a rather hearty serving. However, the brunette gave himself none. He merely sat down across from Shikamaru and flashed him an encouraging smile. The Nara frowned. _

"_Oi, Neji," he called a bit hesitantly. "Aren't you gonna have any? It's possibly the best somen I've ever eaten." _

_Neji did not meet Shikamaru's eyes as he murmured, "Thank you, Shikamaru, but I'm not very hungry." The latter raised an eyebrow, not entirely convinced. Neji sighed, knowing that it was practically physically impossible to lie to Shikamaru. "I'm…having a bad day…" he confessed. Shikamaru frowned, silently asking for more elaboration. He was not disappointed. "I haven't been able to keep food down lately." At this, Shikamaru set down his chopsticks. He made his way over to where Neji was sitting and pulled the brunette into a curt hug. _

"_I'm sorry," he whispered. "Can I do anything for you? I could make you broth or rice? Something easy on your stomach." Neji just shook his head, lightly smiling at the younger. _

"_Maybe later," he suggested. But Shikamaru knew that that was about as good as a "no," coming from Neji at least. "But, let's forget about this," Neji deflected any further arguments with a smile. "Let's get out a shogi board, you can eat while we play." Shikamaru could not help the small smile that crossed his face at Neji's enthusiasm. _

"_Okay," Shikamaru reluctantly agreed. "I'll get the game out; you set up the table." With a small nod from Neji, Shikamaru headed over to his closet to search for his illusive and ever-moving shogi board._

_By the time they actually began to play, Shikamaru's dinner was starting to get colder. Still, it tasted good, to say the least, and Shikamaru ate all of it very quickly. Neji just smiled._

_Shikamaru made his first move, knowing Neji's usual strategies and tendencies, and planning for every single one of them. However, a few moves into the game, Neji made a mistake. A _beginner's_ mistake. One that Shikamaru had not seen him make for years. The Nara gazed at Neji, confused. The brunette simply stared back, showing no signs of deception. It would seem that Neji had truly made the bad move on accident. Still, just in case, Shikamaru adapted his plan to compensate for a feint on Neji's part. _

_The game was moving fast, far too fast. Ten or so minutes into it, when Shikamaru _usually_ had taken a quarter (or even a fifth) of Neji's pieces, he had already taken over half. Neji, who was normally catching up somewhat to Shikamaru by now, had not been able to take any of Shikamaru's pieces. The Nara was baffled. He looked up at the brunette again, hoping for an explanation. Instead, Neji simply shook his head, awed at Shikamaru's apparent "prowess."_

"_Wow, Shikamaru," he murmured. "You're getting so good. You haven't beaten me like this in years." After that, Shikamaru could no longer meet Neji's eyes._

"_Yeah," he agreed half-heartedly. "I must be having a really good day." Neji did not even notice his dishonesty. _"Neji,"_ he thought soberly, _"I'm not getting better; you're getting worse." _Once the Nara had realized this, he could no longer bear to keep playing. "Neji," he addressed after a few moments, "I…" Suddenly, he found himself unable to think of anything to say. "I've got to go," he managed. He quickly stood, strode over to the bathroom, closed the door behind him, and collapsed against the door. He buried his face in his hands. "Oh God," he murmured to himself. "I never thought…he…he's actually losing his ability to think logically…" _

_Shikamaru could not believe it. His friend was spiraling downwards even faster than he had ever predicted. Neji had just turned nineteen, and already he was losing his cognitive functions like an Alzheimer's patient. How much worse would Neji get? Would he lose the ability to function on his own? If so, then how fast? How much time did he have left with Neji?_

_For the first time since Shikamaru had watched Neji collapse on the battlefield, coughing up blood, the brunette's imminent mortality had never seemed so clear._

_There was a knock on the bathroom door. "Shikamaru? Is everything all right?" Shikamaru could not find the will the respond. "Shikamaru? Shikamaru?" There was a pause. "I'm coming in, okay?" After another moment, Neji opened the door. He stepped into the bathroom, gazing down at Shikamaru's form against the wall. "Shikamaru," he called again, kneeling beside the Nara. He frowned upon seeing Shikamaru's melancholy expression. "What's wrong?"_

_Shikamaru just shook his head; his eyes filled with unshed tears. The next thing he knew, he was pulled into a powerful embrace. It was gentle but strong, exactly like Neji. This warmth, this vitality, this kindness wound soon be snuffed out like a candle. How long would it be before Neji no longer had the strength to even wrap his arms around another person? How many more years, months, would Neji be able to recognize Shikamaru? Be conscious enough to speak to him? _

_Shikamaru had not even realized that he was crying until Neji gently rubbed his back and whispered, "Shikamaru, shhh, it's going to be all right. Please don't cry. Tell me what's wrong, and I'll try to fix it." This only made Shikamaru cry harder. There was no way to fix what Neji had. It was an inevitable decline, an inevitable death. "Shikamaru?"_

_The Nara took in a shaky breath. "I'm sorry," he managed. Neji smiled softly._

"_For what?" Shikamaru just shook his head._

"_Everything."_


	5. Present: Gaara, Neji, and Shikamaru

***I dedicate this next chapter to Never Believe the Believable! Thanks for reading and reviewing so often! Anyway, guess who's graduating in a week…it's me! I'm almost done with high school. I'm heading to Hampshire College next year, should be a blast, right? Well, enjoy the next chapter!**

**Notes: ****I'm pretty sure "Itoko" means cousin, but I could be wrong (you are talking to someone who's illiterate in Japan, and only knows butchered Japanese from anime/manga. Yeah, I only know enough to get by in a fight XD). Also, I think "Geji-mayu" means fuzzy brows, though I'm not sure if it mayu or mayo. I just know that that's what Naruto calls Lee.**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 5: Present—Gaara, Neji, and Naruto**

Lee could not help the relief that seemed to flood his entire body when in the distance he saw Sai helping a battered Naruto to walk. He could not control the smile that crossed his face. Naruto and Sai were alive. They had won. He briefly glanced toward his redheaded companion, only to find that Gaara was smiling as well. No, not just smiling, he was absolutely beaming, unshed tears of happiness in his eyes (or rather his visible eye). His celadon green iris shifted towards Lee, as he whispered, "They did it, Lee."

The taijutsu-specialist simply shook his head in disbelief. "Wonderful, is it not?" He grinned at the Kazekage. "You know, Gaara-kun, if you had smiled like that when we first met, I might have fallen for you instead of Neji." He chuckled good-naturedly at the shock on Gaara's face. The redhead chose to say nothing.

"Gaara! Geji-mayu!" came a call from afar; Naruto had spotted them. The blonde grinned widely at the sight of his friends. However, as they got closer, his smile disappeared. It would seem that he saw the states that Neji and Shikamaru were in. Gaara and Lee stopped in front of their two comrades. "Neji…Shikamaru…are they okay?"

"Nara-kun isn't in any immediate danger, but Neji-san needs medical attention right now," Gaara answered without delay. "We need to find Haruno-san as soon as possible." Naruto nodded.

"Right. If you give me a sec to rest, I can go find her-"

"No," argued Sai. "I'll find her. You've done enough for one day." Naruto sighed, but reluctantly agreed.

"Let's split up," cut in Gaara, deciding to take charge. "We have three capable fighters-"

"Two capable fighters," Lee corrected in a stern tone. One would think that he was speaking to a stubborn younger brother instead of the Godaime Kazekage. Lee and Gaara shared a glance. "Please, Gaara-kun," he admonished in a gentler tone. Naruto and Sai were unsure of the true meaning behind the argument but thought it better not to ask. Gaara redhead sighed.

"Okay, two capable fighters. Four if Naruto and I push it, one critically ill and one…" he trailed off, looking towards Shikamaru. It was uncertain whether or not he could fight if the situation warranted it, but for now, he was staring at the ground, clinging to Gaara.

"What's up with Shikamaru?" asked Naruto. Gaara shook his head.

"He won't say," the redhead explained. "I'm no medic, but I wonder if Uchiha's genjutsu could have some lingering effects." Naruto sighed.

"Another one for Sakura-chan then…" Then, Naruto met Gaara's eyes, with a meaningful expression. "Gaara…give it to me straight. Where is he?" It was obvious whom Naruto was referring to. Gaara briefly closed his eyes, swallowing.

"He's…back in the canyon…Lee and I…we're not entirely sure what happened, but something went wrong. Neji-san and Nara-kun had to… they…they had to kill him..." Naruto's eyes dimmed to a morose grey. He looked ready to cry. Gaara left Shikamaru for a moment as he stepped closer to Naruto. The redhead wrapped his arms around the other comfortingly, like a brother. It was true: without Sasuke, Gaara was the closest thing Naruto had to a brother, along with Neji, the blonde's only living blood-relative. "You were phenomenal," the Kazekage soothed. "You defeated Uchiha Madara, and you did everything you could for Sasuke. You did everything right, Naruto. It wasn't you that caused his death; it wasn't Sasuke; it wasn't even Shikamaru and Neji. It was a terrible situation that's to blame. Everyone did the best they could, but sometimes, it's not enough." Naruto made no attempt to respond to Gaara's wise words, but it was obvious that the blonde was at least mulling them over.

"If I may interrupt," interjected Sai, "why don't Lee-san and I go find Sakura-san? Naruto-kun, you and Kazekage-sama wait here and take care of Neji-san and Shikamaru-san. If something happens, Kazekage-sama should be able to take care of it without Naruto-kun having to push himself any further." Lee did not seem convinced. He gazed at the redhead anxiously. _"It is not Naruto-kun that I am worried about,"_ he thought.

Still, it was the best suggestion that the group had, so Lee hesitantly handed Neji over to Naruto. And the taijutsu-specialist and Sai began running to find Sakura at full speed.

Naruto briefly glanced at Gaara who nodded. They sat down against a rather large rock. Neji lay very still in Naruto's lap, while Shikamaru continued to cling to Gaara.

"Nara-kun, are you feeling all right?" asked Gaara. Shikamaru made no response at first. All was quiet for a few moments.

Then…

"Shikamaru," came the Nara's weak, hoarse voice.

"What?" uttered Gaara.

"Shikamaru," he repeated. "Gaara should call me Shikamaru." Light green eyes widened as Shikamaru gently stroked Gaara's ruby-red hair.

"Sh-Shikamaru-kun?" The Nara sighed laying his head on the Kazekage's shoulder.

"Just like that," he murmured to himself. Gaara blushed furiously. On the redhead's other side, Naruto tried to hold himself together for fear of his sides splitting.

"Gaara's got a boyfriend!" he teased. The redhead ignored that in favor of finding out what was wrong with Shikamaru.

"Shikamaru-kun," he called. "Why are you only responding to me? Is there a reason that you only speak to me?" Shikamaru giggled in an unsettling way.

"Only for Gaara," he replied cryptically. He nuzzled the redhead's shoulder. "And Gaara only for me." Suddenly, the Nara shifted so that their positions were reversed and Gaara's head was resting on Shikamaru's shoulder. The Kazekage's blush could now put Hinata's to shame, as Shikamaru kissed his "Ai" scar, whispering, "All mine."

Naruto was trying not to explode from laughing so hard and was failing miserably. "Oh God," he cried. "It hurts to laugh!"

"Naruto! This isn't funny! Why is he doing this?" Immediately, the blonde grew a bit more serious, though smiling gently.

"He went a little crazy, right?" Gaara simply nodded. "Well, let's just say that if I were in the same situation, you'd be the only person who could connect with me, since you've been there yourself. You can understand him like no one else can. That's probably why." Gaara thought about this for a moment, while Shikamaru lightly nuzzled him, sighing in content. Gaara smiled genuinely. He may not have been sure how to respond to Shikamaru's bizarre behavior, but even the redhead had to admit that being this close to another human being was nice if nothing else. He closed his eyes.

"Aw! You guys are so cute!" Gaara glared at the blonde.

"Way to ruin the moment," he muttered. A weak chuckle resounded from the brunette in Naruto's lap.

"Ano sa, ano sa," began Naruto. "Neji, you awake?" The white-eyed boy nodded.

"Barely," he managed hoarsely.

"Well you better stay alive, Itoko, or else I'll…kill you again." Neji chuckled softly again.

"Fair enough," he whispered. They were quiet for a moment.

Naruto's original fondness for Neji had tripled within the last few years. Growing up alone with no family and then finding out that you had a long-lost cousin (practically a brother) did that to people. Naruto had found out that he was the son of the Yondaime Hokage (one Namikaze Minato) after the Akatsuki invasion of Konoha, but he and Neji did not make the connection that they were related by blood until much later. When Shikamaru came home with a limp, half-dead Neji over his shoulder, Kakashi had decided that it was time that the two shinobi knew the truth about their parents.

But that good news came with a price: Neji was dying. Naruto had finally found the family that he had always dreamed of, but he was given a few more years at most.

"Naruto," Neji whispered, startling the blonde out of that miserable train of thought. The brunette pointed to Naruto's left, smiling. "I never thought I'd see the day." Next to them, Gaara was fast asleep, his head resting on Shikamaru's shoulder, while the Nara held onto him possessively.

"Shouldn't that be the other way around?" wondered Naruto. Neji shrugged.

"It doesn't matter; they both seem to be enjoying it." Naruto nodded absentmindedly.

"Oi, Neji?" The brunette met his eye to show that he was listening. "What happened out there in the canyon?" The Namikaze frowned, chewing his lip.

"I only know half…by the time I came to, the fight was already over. Shikamaru's the only one who knows the whole story. Besides, we should wait for Sakura-san. She probably wants to know as well." Naruto nodded, knowing full well that Sakura was just as concerned about Sasuke as he.

"Wait…Neji, why don't Gaara and Geji-mayu know?" the blonde asked, realizing that the four of them had been together when they continued on after Sasuke. Neji said nothing at first.

"…We ran into some trouble," he explained. Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Kabuto," the brunette said simply. "He's tough…but obviously, he's no match for the four of us combined, though with Orochimaru's being within him, who knows what he's capable of?" The blonde nodded, having fought Orochimaru's right-hand man himself on several occasions. "Well, Kabuto's smart, and realized that the best strategy would be to keep us from using teamwork, and take us out one-by-one. He decided to start with the strongest first, so he went for-"

"Gaara," Naruto finished, starting to understand what happened. Neji simply nodded.

"But Gaara-san is smart as well. He let Kabuto separate him from the group and led the fight away from us. The message was clear: 'Go after Sasuke; I'll catch up.' "

"So you, Geji-mayu, and Shika…fought Sasuke…" Neji shook his head.

"No, after we started catching up with him, Lee went back to help Gaara. He…he knew Shikamaru and I can handle ourselves, and he kept getting this bad feeling about leaving Gaara alone with Kabuto. And let me just say, when Lee has a bad feeling, he's usually right." Naruto shook his head in disbelief.

"I wonder what had Geji-mayu so spooked. Must've been some fight too. I mean, for Gaara to be _this _worn-out, he must've really overdone things."

He sighed, turning back towards said Kazekage and Shikamaru. Gaara stirred slightly, prompting Shikamaru to soothe the redhead back to sleep. Gaara's breathing evened out again.

"Geez, Gaara's one of my best friends, and I've _never_ seen him like this. And then with the way Geji-mayu's been acting, it's like he's been seriously injured, but he looks okay to me…" The blonde shrugged. "Whatever, I could use a nap myself…and some ramen. Hm, yeah, after Sakura-chan heals you, I'll treat you and Chibi to Ichiraku's…Chifuyu can eat solid foods, right?" Neji laughed, though it ended in a small coughing fit.

"Naruto, Chifuyu's been able to eat solid foods for over three years now." Naruto laughed nervously.

"Kids do grow up fast these days. Seriously though, go back to sleep. No offense, Itoko, but you look like hell." Neji nodded, in no mood to fight. "Looks like I have to stay awake though," the blonde continued, "because our _first line of defense _(I'm looking at you, you stupid redhead!) has passed out." Gaara, seemingly unaware of Naruto's insult, simply mumbled something unintelligible in his sleep before settling himself in a better position on Shikamaru's shoulder. "You know, he's just lucky he's cute, or else I'd smack him. Did you know that's the only reason I didn't knock him even more senseless at the Chuunin Exams? It wasn't any of that Jinchuuriki mutual understanding crap. It was because he's adorable when he's not completely insane. It'd be like stabbing a baby bunny, man." Naruto paused, wondering why no one had told him to shut up and stop rambling. Then the reason became clear: Neji was already fast asleep.


	6. Past: Neji

***These next 3 chapters are technically, one chapter…I just decided to separate them because there is a bit where it returns to the present. It's basically just for the sake of continuity, and to stave off confusion. Anyway, I don't have much to say about it, but we do finally find out the origin of the mysterious "Chifuyu"! And the Lord said, "LET THERE BE FANFICS!" …Hurray for blasphemy! Anyway, please, enjoy these next "3" chapters.**

**Notes: Hyuuga Hibari is an OC Branch Family member, and one of Neji's distant cousins. Hyuuga Hisae is Neji's grandmother (a.k.a. the mother of Hizashi and Hiashi), and a member of the Main Family, also an OC.**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 6: Past—Neji**

_Neji was heading toward Hyuuga Mansion, and he did not like it one bit. After he had married Lee, the Clan's Elders had decided (against Hiashi's wishes) that Neji would be exiled from the Hyuuga Clan. His Byakugan had been sealed in a way which allowed him to use it, but made it impossible for him to pass it on to his children, and for that, Neji was glad. His children would never be slaves of the Main House. Still, he was no longer welcome in the mansion. The people of the Branch House were as kind and hospitable as always, as were Hinata, Hiashi, and Hanabi, but no one else of the Main House regarded him as more than a household pest. Neji's decisions had deprived them of his "precious genetics" after all._

_With a sigh, Neji continued on. Hinata had come to his and Lee's apartment, explaining that her father wished to speak with him about something. It was a personal matter, and the man wished to speak to Neji about it in private. For Neji's uncle, his study in the mansion was the best place. _

_Still, Neji hated the odd stares he was given when he entered through the front, so he decided instead to take the entrance to the Branch's part of the mansion instead. _

_It was summer. The grass and leaves could not have been greener. Neji was about to enter the mansion through a sliding door near the garden, but a soft sound made itself known. This noise was so heartbreaking and miserable, but what could it be? Then, Neji knew: someone was sobbing. _

_The brunette went instead to the door where the crying was loudest. Cautiously, he entered. "Excuse me, is everyone…" he trailed off. The source of the crying was a young woman sitting on a futon, with a bundle in her arms. She was wearing a kimono used primarily for sleep and looked so very pale and shaken, weak, almost dying. _

_Neji stepped closer, only to find that he was staring at one of his cousins Hyuuga Hibari. He knelt down next to the futon, attracting her attention. Hibari was a fairly young woman, but still almost ten years Neji's senior. She had long dark-hair and the whitest of eyes, the brightest eyes in the Hyuuga Clan, easily. _

"_Oh, Neji-kun," she managed through tears. "I didn't realize you were here." Neji nodded._

"_Why're you crying, Hibari-nee-san?" Her beautiful eyes met his._

"_I…Well, you see, Neji-kun…I…like your father, got into a relationship with someone…who was not in the Clan…" Neji nodded, having a bad feeling about what was coming next. "It was a man…by the name of Yamanaka Inosuke. We…were not allowed to be married, but we decided that we wanted to raise a child anyway. I became pregnant, and…gave birth earlier today to a baby girl." Neji smiled at her._

"_That's wonderful, Hibari-nee-san. Is that her?" Hibari nodded, also smiling, though tears were still streaming down her face. She handed the bundle to Neji, who took it tenderly. Everything about the brunette seemed to melt as he held that baby, his expressions, his gestures; everything became so much softer, gentler. _

"_Hello," he whispered. The baby blinked up at him with stunning white eyes. He looked up at Hibari, "She has your eyes," he murmured. Hibari nodded, but her smile soon fell, as the blanket wrapped around her child loosened, revealing something that no Hyuuga mother would wish on her child._

_Platinum blond hair._

_Neji's eyes widened considerably. He looked back to his cousin who began to sob brokenly._

"_Why couldn't she have been born like you, Neji-kun!" she cried. "My baby! Oh God, my baby!" Neji's heart ached for the woman, for any Hyuuga borne from a parent outside of the clan would be killed, should they inherit any other clan's features. Platinum blond hair was a trademark of the Yamanaka clan, but on a Hyuuga clan woman's baby, it was as good as a death sentence. "She's so beautiful, Neji-kun!" Hibari continued. "How can they take her away from me just because of that?" Neji again nodded. Had the brunette been born any other way, he too would have been killed at birth._

"_She deserves none of this," Neji whispered. "If only there was something I could do…when do they plan to take her?"_

"_The midwife has gone to fetch Hisae-sama as we speak." Neji cringed, knowing full well that with his severe and merciless grandmother on duty, there would be no chance for that poor innocent baby. There had to be something he could do. But Neji was no longer part of the clan; he had no rights whatsoever to oppose the decision. He was an outsider after all…_

_Then, it hit him._

"_Hibari-nee-san, I want you to write a letter stating that you will leave your baby in my care. They have no rights over me, or my family, so she would be safe with me."_

"_Neji-kun! I could never ask you to do such a thing. Having a baby at your age?" Neji shook his head. _

"_Please, Hibari-nee-san, I want more than anything for your baby to survive. Here." Neji grabbed a pen and paper from the nearby desk and gave it to Hibari. Meticulously they worded her statement, leaving no loopholes for the Elders to play on. Finally, she signed the statement, as did Neji. Hibari handed Neji her baby. _

"_Neji-kun, I want you to take her as far away from here as you can. Promise that you will make her happy. Please." Neji nodded, smiling._

"_I promise, but don't act like you'll never see her again. We'll only be across the village." But Hibari shook her head._

"_Neji-kun, you know as well as I do what it means to give birth to a 'deformed' child." Neji's eyes widened._

"_No!" he cried. Hibari simply nodded._

"_It's okay, Neji-kun. As long as my baby is safe, I will die proudly." Tears began to fall from Neji's eyes, but Hibari just kept smiling. She opened her arms, embracing Neji, her baby, and her fate all at once. "Be good for Neji-kun," she whispered to the baby girl, lightly kissing her head. "Goodbye, Neji-kun, I can't thank you enough. Now, hurry;" she looked back to the door, hearing footsteps, "Hisae-sama's coming!" _

_Neji got up and began to walk away. He stopped only for a moment, turning. Hibari was smiling, and the brunette tried to burn that proud, kind image of his cousin into his memory. Hibari feared neither pain nor death. That would be how Neji remembered her._

_And then he ran. He ran as far and as fast as he could, forgetting about his meeting with Hiashi. There were more important things now: the baby in his arms._

_It was raining out. He had to get the poor thing somewhere warm. _

_He ran, never looking back._


	7. Present: Neji

Neji was too weak to open his eyes. There was something—someone—that he needed to stay alive for. He just felt so heavy. He could not awaken.

"…critical condition," a voice murmured. Neji could only make out parts of a conversation. Who was speaking? Who was in critical condition?

"…need to…Tsunade-baa-chan."

"…first…check over everyone else…just in case…"

Neji's consciousness faded again.


	8. Past: Neji, Lee, and Gai

_*****_**So, this is the last bit of the "3"-chapter update. Enjoy.**

**P.S.**

**The next few chapters are all in the present, so I'm going to actually give them chapter names…well kind of. It'll be like "Present: Regrouping" or "Present: Neji's Illness." So, just be on the look out for that. Btw, would this've been a long oneshot or what?**

**Notes: Hyuugas almost all have names that start with "H"…or something. There's like a kanji equivalent, and the Naruto Wiki explains it best (so look it up if you're interested).**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 8: Past—Neji, Lee, and Gai**

_Neji leaned against a wall, breathing heavily. He had not run that fast in years. He overexerted himself, running all the way to the Hokage monument. All for the little bundle in his arms._

_Oh God, his lungs were starting to fail him. He sucked in shallow breath after breath, still feeling as though he was drowning on dry land. He fell to his knees, vision blurring and warping. The rain beat down on his head, and it was all that he could do to clutch the baby to his chest as he shivered, hoping that he could offer some body heat to comfort the little one. Not so, she began to cry. It was as though she could sense his pain. Neji's line of sight began to gray around the edges, shapes becoming almost pixilated._

"Little one," _he thought, _"I'm sorry." _Neji slumped forward, unable to stay conscious. Before he could completely slip away however, strong arms encircled his waist, keeping him from falling over. The brunette managed to open his eyes enough to see his savior. _

_Maito Gai._

_Gai looked absolutely horrified. Worried beyond belief. "B-b-baby," Neji managed to stammer out, glancing over at the bundle. Neji's breath hitched. His chest hurt. He was falling away from the world, from awareness, into deep, dark sleep. Neji's last conscious thought was that he never wanted to see that look on Gai-sensei's face ever again. Never._

_Neji awoke what felt like centuries later. His eyes opened, then closed, then opened again. He could not seem to keep himself alert. His head was fuzzy. Everything was heavy, sluggish. He had not felt this terrible in a long time._

_He felt something cold being removed from his forehead. He heard water. The cold something was replaced. _

_He blinked blearily, gazing into nothing. He could not recall where he was, what happened. Hell, he could not even remember his own name. _

"_Neji? Are you awake?" came a deep familiar voice from beside him._

_The voice registered in Neji's mind; the words did not. "Awake?" What did that mean again? His head felt as though it might just melt away in nothing. _

_Gai became worried as Neji simply stared into space, not responding at all. The brunette was hardly blinking. "Neji?" he called again. Nothing. He brushed the hair out of the Namikaze's eyes. Not even a twitch. Just those blank, glazed-over eyes. "Neji," he tried again, almost pleading, "wake up. Please wake up. It's Gai-sensei, Neji. It's just Gai-sensei. Please, if you can hear me, do something. Anything. Just let me know you're okay." He gazed directly into those white eyes that plainly said, "There's no one home." Those eyes that looked right through him. Gai frowned. He looked down to the sleeping baby in the brunette's arms. Gai had placed her there, because she was only truly calm when Neji was holding her, even if he was unresponsive._

"_Neji," the sensei continued, "I'm sending for Tsunade-sama, okay?" As expected, the brunette did nothing. Gai hugged his student like a father would, before leaving the room to send for the Hokage._

_When Tsunade finally arrived, she nearly barged into the apartment, alarmed. Whenever she was asked to make a "house-call," she knew that what she was dealing with was bad. However, she was not expecting to find Hyuuga—no, Namikaze—Neji lying in a stupor in Maito Gai's bed, a newborn baby in his arms. Still, she shrugged off the initial shock and began checking him over like she would any other patient. She did most routine procedures (checking temperature, pulse, reflexes, etc.), and her examination was finished quite quickly. _

_The Hokage breathed a sigh of relief. "Tsunade-sama, will he be…okay?" questioned Gai, hoping for good news._

_Tsunade nodded. "From the looks of it, it's not his illness. I believe he's dehydrated. Has he been eating and drinking properly?" Gai frowned._

"_No, he always insists on not eating. He says that he throws up most of what he eats nowadays, but if this's what can happen, I'll be keeping a better eye on him." Tsunade nodded, biting her thumb out of habit._

"_It's amazing that it took him to this point to show symptoms. Normally, he'd have gotten sick a while ago, way before it got to this stage. He really must've gone through something today. I wouldn't be surprised if some kind of stress accelerated the process." Gai nodded dazedly. _

_Tsunade had a point. What _had _happened to Neji today? Where did the baby come from in the first place? And why had Neji collapsed in the middle of the street like that? Gai shuddered to think what would have happened if he had not been there. _

"_Gai," Tsunade called in her authoritative, Hokage-commands-respect tone. "I want you to take Neji to the hospital, and tell the nurses I want him on IV fluid replacements a.s.a.p." The man nodded determinedly. "Let me know if anything changes, okay?" With that, Tsunade began to pack up her stuff. Gai picked up the unresponsive Neji and the baby and headed to the hospital, trying his best not to jog either of them. _

_Still, Gai had to marvel at the fact that Tsunade was concerned about a diagnosis of a simple dehydration case. For Tsunade to be making house-calls and worrying herself sick, she must really want Neji to pull through this disease. Gai could understand her there. He would gladly take on Neji's burden if it meant that his student could live a long and happy life from then on._

_Neji stayed in the hospital all night before he finally awoke. By that time, Lee had returned from his mission and was sitting beside the bed, the baby in his arms. Neji stared up at the black-haired man, his entire body relaxed as his rocked the little baby girl. "Good morning," he whispered sleepily. He could barely keep his eyes open._

_Lee smiled gently at the exhausted brunette. He lightly kissed the Namikaze's forehead. "You gave us all quite a scare," he chastised. With a sigh, he continued, "I have never been happier to see you awake. You were just staring at nothing, as if you could no longer see the world. I know it is stupid…but for a while, I thought you were never going to wake up."_

"_Oh Lee," was the only thing that Neji could bring himself to say. Lee smiled, gently wrapping his free arm around the brunette._

"_I am so happy that you are all right! I think the little one was worried too." He lightly placed the bundle into Neji's open arms. Lee marveled at the same change in Neji that Hibari had witnessed earlier. The softness and warmth, The negation of all doubts and darkness. Neji became perfect as he held that baby. Lee gently pulled them both into his arms. "I have never seen you look so beautiful, my love. You two were made for each other." Neji managed a soft chuckle, resting his head on Lee's shoulder. "But tell me, where did she come from?"_

_Neji frowned._

_Hibari._

_He told Lee everything. The Hyuuga mansion. Hibari. His grandmother. Hyuuga Clan politics and horrid traditions. The baby. The letter. The escape. Gai-sensei. He finished by explaining that he had been unconscious since then. _

_Lee just nodded, actively listening throughout the entire story. Finally. He placed a warm kiss on Neji's lips. "You did wonderfully," he whispered. Neji nodded shakily, trying to ignore the tears that were attempting to fall. _

_They were silent for a long time. _

_Finally, Lee whispered. "We will keep her." Neji's eyes widened._

"_Lee?"_

"_I do not want her to grow up in an orphanage. I want her to grow up with two wonderful parents who love her more than life itself. I want her to grow up to be the loveliest young woman in the entire world, and we will love her unconditionally. I want her to be the something that keeps you fighting, like you were for your Hahaue." This time tears really did fall._

"_Lee," Neji murmured shakily. "I-I love you s-s-so m-much." Lee simply nodded, returning the feeling completely._

_For the next hour or so, if a nurse walked past Namikaze Neji's room, they would have heard voices, soft laughter, and the quiet noises of a newborn baby girl._

"_What about 'Hideyo'?" asked Lee. Neji shook his head._

"_Nothing with an 'H,' that's too Hyuuga. If I didn't know Hibari would kill me, I'd name our baby after her." Lee smiled. _

"_We will come up with something. Hm…Nobuko?" Neji seemed to consider that one._

"_Does she look like a Nobuko? Namikaze Nobuko? Not bad…"_

"_Maybe then?" Neji smiled, nodding. "All right, so far we have Ruri, Sachiko, and Nobuko…what about Yumeji?" Neji smiled sadly._

" '_Dreams of Freedom'…it's a beautiful name, but…I know this sounds silly, Lee, but I don't want our baby to 'dream of freedom,' I want it to be second nature to her. I want her to be free no matter what." Lee nodded._

"_I do not believe that sounds silly at all, Neji. But, what do you want her to have? What do you want her to be like, sweetheart? That could give us somewhere to start." _

_Neji thought for a moment, staring down at their baby as she slept. Those beautiful white eyes and platinum-blond locks. A baby who was wanted so much by her parents, but forced into exile. _

"_I…I want her to live and be happy. I don't care what she's like as long as she can grow up feeling loved and happy. I want her to live a long and full life. She won't just live; she'll _love_ living. I want her someday to look back and say, 'I survived so many years. I was supposed to die at birth, but now, I am an old lady, who's seen more winters than anyone else, and I am glad to have lived for so long' Lee, I will die soon, but our daughter…I want her to live to see through a thousand winters." Neji was not ashamed to say that he wanted to cry. He had never said anything quite so true and wonderful in his entire life. One day with this baby girl, and he felt purified in every way. Their daughter was perfect._

_Lee beamed, " 'A thousand winters,' yes? Well then it is settled! Our baby shall be called 'Chifuyu'. Namikaze Chifuyu, how does that sound, love?" Neji smiled, teary-eyed._

"_Wonderful. Our Chifuyu." Then, Lee crawled into bed next to his brunette, pulling the white-eyed Namikaze into his arms. They basked in each other's warmth, while gently holding and kissing their little Chifuyu. _

_Suddenly, overnight, Neji had a family: a true family._

***Very poorly proofread. T_T**


	9. Present: Gaara's Wound

***This next chapter gets pretty trippy…okay, well trippy isn't really the right word…more like just a little bit out there. Yeah, you'll know what I'm talking about when you get there. Anyway, I graduated! Ha! Fuck you high school, I'm outta here. Anyway, this is for all my reviewers. You guys are the icing on the justice cake! Yeah…okay it's like 3 a.m. and I'm just a bit loopy (weird since I stay up this late on a regular basis). Well, please enjoy!**

**P.S.**

**I'm gonna actually have to start writing soon, so I don't get too ahead of myself with these 2-day or so updates.**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 9: Present- Gaara's Wound**

Neji awoke from the most wonderful dream, a memory. His body hurt like hell, but at least the dream had been lovely.

He felt warm, far too warm, but still, he was also being held by someone, someone familiar and breathtaking. He managed to open his eyes a sliver.

Lee.

But Lee was too distracted by the situation around him to even notice that his favorite brunette was awake. Neji observed the scene as best he could.

It would seem that Gaara was refusing medical attention from Sakura.

He strained his eyes and ears so that he could figure out exactly what was happening.

"Please, Gaara-sama," admonished Sakura, "let me see your wounds." Gaara shook his head vigorously.

"Haruno-san, I would much rather you take a look at Shikamaru-kun," the Kazekage countered professionally. "Or yourself for that matter. Hyuuga-san and Naruto had to help you here." Sakura held up her hand as if to say, "Stop."

"I am a medic-nin, Gaara-sama. This is my job: to heal others. Outside of a fight, I'll save my chakra for my friends and teammates." Gaara remained resolute in his decision. He stood. "Gaara-sama, please! If you're hurt, you could be making it worse!" He began walking away, his back to Sakura.

"I don't have time for this," he muttered. "Temari and Kankuro are my first priority."

"_Gaara_," Lee called sternly, no honorific.

He meant business.

Lee knew Gaara inside and out. If Shikamaru was Neji's closest friend, Gaara was Lee's. He could see the redhead's subtle shaking, his rapid breathing, the sweat beading down his forehead, his exhausted eyes; the Kazekage was hanging on by a thread.

"No, Lee."

"Gaara…" He stared at his companion. He was so pale and shaky; Lee knew that look. It was something akin to Neji on his worst days. "Please."

He shook his head. "Not with…I can't let them see. They'll know what this is. I don't want them to know." Lee's onyx eyes widened.

"W-what do you mean?" he managed.

"Naruto and Sakura _can't _see this, Lee. _They can't_. It'll be too much."

"Gaara?"

"I saw this in my fight with…Sasuke…It was like this." Gaara's eyes were starting to look frantic.

"Gaara?" Lee took a step closer to Gaara.

"They can't know. I won't let them."

"Gaara?" He took another step closer.

"Lee, stop it! Don't come any closer. _No one_ can know, especially them!"

"Gaara?" Another step.

"Dammit Lee!" Gaara finally burst out, letting out all of the anxious and frantic energy that he had been holding back since their fight with Kabuto. "They can't know! It's for them! It's for Naruto and Sakura. _He_ already took Sasuke away from them for the same reason! If they find out the same thing's happened to me they…won't…be able to…" Gaara trailed off, realizing that Naruto and Sakura had heard his entire outburst anyway.

This time Naruto began walking over to Gaara.

"Gaara," he began, "what's this about Sasuke?" Gaara's hand covered his eye almost unconsciously. He backed away a bit.

"It's nothing…"

" 'He,' who's 'he'? 'He' took Sasuke away…do you mean Orochimaru?"

"Naruto…"

"You fought Kabuto; Orochimaru took over Kabuto." Another step closer. Another step back.

"Naruto, please…"

"What did Kabuto do, Gaara? What the hell did he do?" Gaara flinched at Naruto's shout. "The same thing as Sasuke? What's the same thing as Sasuke? Tell me! What happened to you! _What'd he do?_" Naruto tackled Gaara to the ground, pinning his arms. Gaara attempted to struggle, but Naruto was far stronger. "Show me your eye, Gaara!"

"No!"

"Show me your eye!" The rest of the group looked on in shock at the struggle.

"Naruto no! Stop! You can't see! Don't!"

"Show it to me!"

"No!" Then, in the blink of an eye, it was over. The aura had changed. Naruto suddenly stopped moving (though still straddling the redhead). He was completely taken aback.

He had seen it.

"Gaara," he whispered, voice simply dripping with concern. Then, he was hugging him, holding the redhead so close. "I can't believe you," he murmured. "You're so stupid! You knew it'd upset us, huh? Well, you're right! I'm pissed as hell. I'm worried, and I'm scared! But I'm glad I saw. You know why? Because when Sasuke went through this, I didn't know until it was too late, but now, with you, I found out right away. I have a chance this time."

"Naruto…" The blonde just held the Kazekage tighter.

"I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, Gaara. I'm not letting him take you too. Not you, never you."

Sakura walked over.

"Can I see?" she asked gently. Naruto moved, revealing Gaara's "wound."

Suddenly, it all made sense.

Gaara's right eye was completely wrong, to say the least. It was completely bloodshot, and the veins around the eye itself were so clear that it almost seemed as though the skin there was transparent. The iris was no longer the same bright green that he was so known for; it was a deep golden color, with a catlike slit of a pupil.

Orochimaru's eye.

It wasn't Sasuke's curse mark, but it was close enough.

Everyone but Naruto and Lee gasped, even Sai seemed stunned. Sakura looked about ready to cry.

"Sometime during the battle with Kabuto," Gaara began, ignoring the fact that the pain in his head seemed to triple once the eye was revealed. "He hit me in the eye. There…there wasn't a wound at first, but then…this ha-happen—Ah!" Gaara cried out as the pain became worse than anything he had ever felt before. Orochimaru was trying to overwhelm his mind with pain, enough to take over. He could hear the snake whispering, cackling. It took all that the redhead had not to give in.

Then, the pain dulled, dulled enough for Gaara to relax. Even the whispers stopped. Gentle hands began to caress him, tenderly massaging the wound. Someone incredibly warm was holding him. Naruto? No not Naruto. Then, who? He managed to open his good eye.

Auburn eyes.

"Sh-shika-m-maru-k-kun?" The Nara quieted the redhead with a finger to his lips.

" 'Shikamaru-kun' will take care of his Gaara," he whispered. "Take care of him forever." He kissed Gaara's scar as he had earlier. "He loves him." Gaara's eyes widened.

"N-no, Shikamaru-kun…I…you can't…you're mistaking comfort for love…I mean…you can't—no one can…"

"You're babbling," Shikamaru whispered in the redhead's ear, sounding almost hauntingly sane. He soothed the redhead's visible eye closed again. "Rest now," he continued.

Everyone watched on, astounded, as Gaara fell into a half-asleep daze.

***ShikaGaa ftw. Sorry if there're grammar mistakes. Once again, poorly proofread.**


	10. Present: Concerning Shikamaru

***This chapter is dedicated to two dear people: Never Believe the Believable and madwarringinvenice. You guys are the best!**** Well, I don't actually have much to say today…other than, this chapter picks up RIGHT where chapter 9 left off. Yeah, well, please do enjoy yourselves!**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 10: Present—Concerning Shikamaru**

Sakura turned to the group, beckoning everyone but Shikamaru over. Lee picked up Neji, whose closed eyes belied his consciousness, and Hinata, Sai, and Naruto inched closer.

"Was anyone with Shikamaru-kun when he fought?" the pink-haired kunoichi asked in her best professional tone.

"Just Neji," responded Naruto, "but he was unconscious for half the fight." Sakura bit her lip.

"They were the team that…fought Sasuke-kun, right?" Naruto nodded solemnly.

"I think that the only way to know what's wrong with Shikamaru-kun and Neji-san for that matter, is to find out exactly what happened. But Shikamaru-kun has been acting strangely, and he's the only person who knows everything."

"Sakura-san," called Lee hesitantly. "Shikamaru-kun is…I am not sure what he is. When Gaara-kun and I found him, Shikamaru-kun was curled up in the fetal position, crying his eyes out. Gaara-kun somehow got through to him, and Shikamaru-kun has been clinging to him ever since. I am not sure what the true cause of his behavior is, but Gaara-kun seemed to think that Sasuke-kun's genjutsu could have played a role." Sakura nodded, hanging on Lee's every word.

"Yes…I agree with Gaara-sama on that. Genjutsu is known to cause problems with the neural pathways and the constriction of the keirakukei, either of which could easily be the source of Shikamaru-kun's change in behavior."

"I sense a 'but' coming," muttered Naruto.

"But," continued Sakura, "there is also a less-hopeful possibility. It could be that having to…to…to kill…him…was…too much for Shikamaru-kun…and his only coping mechanism was withdrawal from reality."

"W-what does th-that mean for Sh-Shikamaru-kun?" questioned Hinata seriously.

"There is no easy cure for any kind of mental illness, let alone trauma-induced psychosis. If Shikamaru-kun's experiencing a mental breakdown of some kind, it could take years and years of therapy to help him, and even then he may never be the same again." Naruto grimaced.

"What about if it's the genjutsu though?" he asked. Sakura's expression softened.

"I'm not experienced enough to do this well, so Shishou or Shizune-sempai will have to do it, but an experienced hand can easily reverse the damage done to the neural pathways and keirakukei. Shikamaru-kun will most likely have to stay in the hospital for a few weeks under observation, and he wouldn't be able to perform his shinobi duties for at least a month after release (since relapse is highly probable in these cases), but overall, he would make a full recovery."

"Let us pray for that scenario then," murmured Lee.

"How do we know which case he is?" Sai inquired. Sakura sighed.

"It's a simple test. I would more or less stimulate his nerves using chakra until I found the problem area: if his psychosis has a physical cause, he would retain his sanity for a few minutes, if not, there would be no change-"

"Great! Let's do that then," exclaimed Naruto.

"I wasn't finished yet, baka! This procedure can cause more problems than it's worth. If it is in fact physical, then after the few minutes in the clear, Shikamaru-kun's keirakukei in the region will probably collapse even further, causing him to be worse off than he is now." The group was conflicted. Did the benefits outweigh the risks?

"I think we should do it," argued Naruto after a few moments of contemplation. All turned to Naruto, unsure of what could possibly make the blonde so decisive. "Think about it," he continued. "If we do it then Baa-chan won't have to, which'll save her some crucial time for healing Neji and Gaara. Also, if Shikamaru is physically psychotic…or whatever, we could use those few minutes to ask about Sasuke, which could help us figure out what to do next." There was a silent consensus among the group.

"All right," conceded Sakura. "But Naruto, if we have to carry Shikamaru-kun back because something went wrong, you're doing it." Naruto reluctantly agreed to the pink-haired girl's conditions.

The group slowly approached Shikamaru.

The Nara was still rocking the half-asleep Gaara gently, back and forth, back and forth. Upon seeing the group, Shikamaru appeared to feel threatened. He backed away from them, holding the redhead closer. "Stay away," he managed shakily.

Sakura, at the front of the group, held out her hands in a calming manner. "Shikamaru-kun," she soothed, "it's okay. We just want to help." The aforementioned shook his head.

"No! You're lying!" He backed himself against the cliff wall. He was literally backed into a corner. Auburn eyes widening, Shikamaru forced chakra into his shadow. It split into a half-dozen smaller shadows, each penetrating the air menacingly.

Still, the Nara flinched. He was pushing himself to the limit by activating his jutsu. He clutched onto Gaara for support. The redhead stirred. "Shika…maru…kun?" he called softly. His mint green eyes took in the situation at hand. He looked from Shikamaru to the others and back again. The Kazekage attempted to stand only to have his legs give out on him. Shikamaru caught him before he could fall. He held onto the redhead for dear life, his shadows extending further, moving sporadically, like an enraged animal.

Gaara managed to cup the Nara's cheek in his hand. "Sh-Shikamaru-kun…it's okay. Whatever they're going to do…i-it's for the best…" Shikamaru seemed to relax, though he still seemed wary. Gaara managed to switch their positions so that Shikamaru was lying in the Kazekage's arms. He comfortingly ran a hand through Shikamaru's hair. The Nara calmed down enough to let his shadow recede. "That's it," he murmured. "You'll be just fine. You can trust them." He gave Sakura a curt nod.

"What needs healing?" he asked loud enough for Shikamaru to hear, knowing that it would comfort the other to know what was happening.

"I'm running a test to see if his psychosis was caused by the genjutsu." Again, Gaara nodded.

Sakura approached the Nara, her hands lit brightly with green chakra. Shikamaru backed away a bit, burying his face in Gaara's shoulder.

"Shh," the redhead soothed, "it's okay. Haruno-san's just trying to help." Shikamaru whimpered as the chakra-lit hand grazed over his forehead. Then, chakra oozed into his head, causing him to tense at the odd sensation. "You're doing just fine, Shikamaru-kun," murmured Gaara. He rubbed circles on the Nara's back, smiling as the other finally seemed to relax.

After a few minutes, Sakura began to get worried. She had checked almost all of the major neural pathways to no avail. This wasn't looking good for Shikamaru. She probed deeper into the Nara's mind.

And then…

Shikamaru cried out, practically jumping out of Gaara's arms. He backed against a nearby boulder, breathing heavily, eyes wide and body shaking. "Oh shit," he hissed out. "Never, under any circumstances, do that again, Sakura. My God…it was like getting a rasengan to the face…" He flinched as a sudden wave of pain hit him. "Ugh…make that two rasengans."

It would seem that the cause of Shikamaru's psychosis was physical after all.

"Sh-shika…maru-kun?" called Gaara weakly, surprised at the Nara's sudden change in demeanor. Shikamaru blinked, turning towards the redhead. His eyes softened.

"Hey," he called gently, making his way over to the redhead. "How's the eye? Is it hurting at all? Can you hear any voices? Seeing any hallucinations? I'm betting Kabuto didn't infect you with Orochimaru's cells just for kicks." Gaara just continued to stare, completely taken aback. "You okay?" asked the Nara. "Feeling sick?" He placed a hand on his forehead as if checking for fever, but said nothing.

Then, Gaara beamed. He smiled like never before, unable to contain his relief at the Nara's complete one-eighty.

Shikamaru chuckled. "You need to smile like that more often," he teased. "Anyone ever tell you you're adorable?" Gaara flushed a deep red, which made Shikamaru feel oddly satisfied.

"Oi, Shika," called Naruto. "I'm the only person allowed to tease Gaara-chan! Got that?" Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"He has a way of ruining all my fun," he murmured, just loud enough for Gaara to hear.

"Enough you two," shouted Sakura. She let out an exasperated sigh. "Shikamaru, I'm assuming you remember most of what happened."

"It's a little fuzzy in places, but I can more or less tell you everything from when Kabuto came to now." Sakura grew a bit more serious.

"You only have a few minutes before your keirakukei collapses in on itself, so do think you could give us an idea of what happened out there in the canyon before you run out of time?" Shikamaru nodded.

The Nara began to speak. He told them of how Kabuto had appeared and Gaara stayed to fight, of how Lee grew afraid and went back for the redhead, of how he, Neji, and Sasuke met up in the canyon and began to fight. He told them of being trapped in several genjutsu: the first was physical pain, the next was a strange sort of sensory chaos which threw him for a loop, and the third was a product of Sasuke's most advanced Sharingan in which he was forced to kill Asuma, over and over again, in so many different ways. Then, everyone he loved, he began to kill: his mother, his father, Temari, Ino, Choji, Naruto, Neji, Lee. He had attempted to break out of this genjutsu by pouring chakra into his head. But this had done more damage than good to his keirakukei and neural pathways. He had broken out of the genjutsu, but at a price: any stimulation to his brain would cause terrible consequences.

He had come to on the ground; Neji and Sasuke were fighting at an incredibly high level, but it was obvious that Neji was wearing down. His body was failing him, and he did not have long before his pain would overwhelm his will. Shikamaru managed to sit up, but it would seem that he was not needed; for, at that moment, Neji had cornered Sasuke. He was so close! One jyuuken strike to the heart would be all it would take, but then, Neji hesitated. He murmured, "Sasuke, I don't want to kill you. This is your last chance. Come back to Konoha. Naruto and Sakura are here. They can help you; they _want_ to help you." Then, Sasuke struck Neji with a Chidori through the stomach. Neji cried out, coughing up blood. He stumbled, falling against Sasuke who merely threw Neji's limp body against the canyon wall.

Then Shikamaru lost it. He had no idea what happened in those next few minutes. He could remember screaming and crying. Shouting, "YOU SON OF A BITCH! HE GAVE YOU MERCY! HE GAVE YOU A CHANCE! AND YOU KILLED HIM!" The next few minutes were a haze of red and anger and death. By the time Shikamaru could remember who he was again, Sasuke was dead, his throat slit brutally. Shikamaru had vomited on the ground nearby. He looked from Sasuke to Neji and back again. He was surrounded by death and decay. Everything was his fault. Everyone was probably dead. Naruto, Gaara, Lee, Neji, Sasuke, Sakura, Temari, the list went on and on. Ino and Choji. But it ended with Asuma. It always ended with Asuma. It was his fault. Always his fault. Everything Shikamaru touched died.

He curled into the fetal position and lost his mind.

"…And that's all I can remember," the Nara finished softly. Everyone was wide-eyed and horrified. Sakura was crying. Naruto looked like he was about to. How could they not? Sasuke had been a traitor until the end. And Neji, poor Neji was run through with a Chidori, as if his own illness was not enough. Lee looked as though he was about to throw up.

By this point, Shikamaru was still sitting against the boulder, Gaara by his side. The redhead looked into his auburn eyes with pure empathy and melancholy. Shikamaru gave him a sad smile. "Hey, Sakura," he called softly. She wiped a few tears from her eyes.

"Yes?" she replied, voice hoarse from crying.

"How long do I have before I go crazy again?" Sakura grimaced at his phrasing but answered nonetheless.

"About thirty seconds." Shikamaru sighed.

"Mendokuse. I could use more time, but it'll do." He turned to Gaara, and pulled the redhead into the deepest most bruising and passionate kiss he could muster. The Kazekage's mind went blank as he melted into the kiss, the warmth, Shikamaru's smell and taste. It was so perfect, so wonderful. Shikamaru could turn him into nothing but a puddle of goo with a simple touch of his lips. Then, the Nara pulled back, though Gaara was now in his lap and so out of it that he was completely at Shikamaru's mercy (too bad he only had about ten seconds left). He leaned down and murmured in the redhead's ear, "Just so you know it's not just the crazy talking. I meant it when I said you're mine." Gaara let out a soft, longing sigh.

Life was good.

Then the moment shattered.

Suddenly, Shikamaru began to shake, his eyes wide, and his mouth forming unintelligible words. His grip on Gaara tightened a hundred-fold.

And he collapsed.


	11. Present: Gaara Takes the Reins

***This is the last present chapter for now. The next one takes us back to Lee and Neji in the past. God. Can you imagine if this was a oneshot? It's so fucking long! Ridiculous, right? This one also takes place where the last chapter left off. Well, I hope you enjoy!**

**Notes: The little interlude with Lee and Hinata was just something that crossed my mind as I was writing. If it offends you in any way, please pay it no mind. It's really of no consequence. Still, it is something I've always wondered about. Also, I figured that Shino is a pretty good strategist, at least from what I've seen of him.**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 11: Present—Gaara Takes the Reins**

Shikamaru fell to the ground, completely limp. His auburn eyes were blank, his expression empty.

Gaara felt his stomach drop. He seemed as though he had been punched in the gut. Slowly, he crawled over to the Nara. He began shaking him. "Shikamaru-kun?" he called gently. "Shikamaru-kun, can you hear me? Please, say something. Anything." Shikamaru did not even blink. "…Haruno-san?" Sakura walked over, placing a comforting hand on the Kazekage's shoulder.

"He'll be all right," she soothed. "Shishou can help him." Sakura could not see Gaara's face from the angle she was facing, but she had a feeling that the redhead was the closest he had ever been to tears in a long time.

"What's…what's wrong with him?" She squeezed his shoulder.

"His keirakukei's collapsed. It's nothing fatal, but in this particular case it caused his psychosis to worsen to this point. I'm no psychologist, but I believe that he's completely withdrawn from reality. He's in his own world now." Sakura took a deep breath, but suddenly, she flashed the Kazekage a warm smile. "I don't know where he is right now, but I'd bet anything you're there with him." A small smile in return was all Gaara needed to respond. Naruto walked over, Sai by his side. Lee was tending to Neji along with Hinata. The brunette was conscious, but unable to truly respond to anything.

"Hey," Naruto called, gently placing his hand on Gaara's shoulder. "What's the situation here?"

"Well, looks like you're going to have to carry Shikamaru-kun after all," replied Sakura. The blonde nodded.

Meanwhile, Lee gently brushed a stray lock of hair out of Neji's face. He had laid the brunette in Hinata's lap instead of his own, knowing that the jounin found Neji's presence extremely comforting, and vice versa. Hinata did not stutter when Neji was near. "Lee-nii-san?" she called. She had adopted the honorific after he and her cousin (practically her older brother) had gotten married. The taijutsu-specialist nodded in response. "I sometimes wonder if Sakura-chan and Naruto-kun…if they would have been happier had Gaara-sama been born in Konoha."

"What do you mean, Hinata-imouto-chan?" Lee had begun calling Hinata his "younger sister" by habit. Neji was the only person whose name he could bear to call without an honorific.

"Well, look at them. Imagine if Gaara-sama had gone to the academy with us. Both Naruto-kun and he would have a friend to love them unconditionally. Or imagine if Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan had been put on a team with Gaara-sama. I don't mean to disrespect Sasuke-kun, but sometimes I just can't help but think that they would be happier, freer, without him always bearing down on them…"

Lee watched as, Naruto wrapped an arm around Gaara, while Sakura smiled genially, helping Shikamaru into a sitting position. "Yes," he murmured softly. "I think that I understand what you mean."

"Oi, Hinata! Geji-mayu!" called Naruto. "We should try and find everyone else!" Lee glanced at Hinata, who nodded with a determined expression. Lee gathered Neji into his arms and walked over to Naruto and the others, Hinata by his side. "Okay, so who needs to be carried?"

"Shikamaru-kun," answered Sakura. "Naruto, you can handle that." The blonde nodded, as Sai helped the Nara onto his back. "I need to save my chakra for the others, so I can't really heal myself yet. Hinata-chan, would you mind lending me your shoulder again?" The violet-haired Hyuuga nodded.

"Y-yes, of course, S-Sakura-chan…"

"Lee, I gather you're carrying Neji?" The black-haired man smiled and nodded. "Right, so that just leaves Gaara-sama—"

"I'll be all right on my own, Haruno-san. I've already made it this far."

"Please, Gaara-sama, Sai has a free shoulder. I'd feel much better if I knew that you were saving your strength." The Kazekage just shook his head.

"I can't," he murmured. "I can't let myself relax until I see that Temari and Kankuro are all right." Sakura bit her lip but, in the end, gave in.

"All right. Let's go then—"

"Wait," began Gaara, softly but at the same time powerfully. "We can't just go like this. We need a plan, or at least a formation to be on the safe side. We don't know who's out there. There could still be enemies waiting to ambush us. And we have some very important targets here: Haruno-san, you're one of the best medic-nin's in the Five Great Shinobi Nations; Sai-san was one of Danzou's best men; Naruto is the successor to Tsunade-dono; Shikamaru-kun is one of the best strategists of Ho no Kuni, advisor to the current Hokage, and chief advisor to Naruto after his inauguration; and of course, I am the current Kazekage."

"Ano sa, Gaara," cut in Naruto, "Shika's down for the count. So is Neji. Who can come up with a plan for us? Plus, don't you trust everyone? They all probably won their battles."

"It's the _probably_ he's worried about, baka!" cried Sakura. "Well let's think here. Shikamaru-kun was our team leader, but…with him incapacitated, we need to elect a new leader, and I think the choice is clear." Next to Sakura, Lee nodded.

"Yes, I agree."

"Oi, who? What're you guys talking about!"

"Well, Gaara-sama of course," explained Sakura.

"What?" the redhead exclaimed, genuinely surprised. "I'm no strategist; that's more of Temari's thing."

"Think about it, Gaara-kun," cut in Lee. "The only reason that you are not leading this mission in the first place is because you and Hokage-sama thought it was in the team's best interest if there was only one team leader. In other words, you thought it best if you deferred to Shikamaru-kun's authority." Gaara met Lee's eyes for a moment, and in that one brief instant, they seemed to come to a mutual understanding. Gaara sighed standing up.

"All right, from here until we reach Konoha again, I will be the team leader. Our objective is to return safely, with as many lives as we can. Though we have taken out both Uchiha Madara and Kabuto…Orochimaru…whoever he is—"

"Hey, Gaara," Naruto called, laughing, "Kabutochimaru." Gaara let out a sigh, but was unable to hide his own smile.

"Yes, Uchiha Madara and Kabutochimaru. Anyway, there may still be Akatsuki and Oto-nin who were either called in for back-up, or who have been here the whole time, waiting for some sort of signal. I'm guessing that their orders were to take out whoever was pursuing their leaders. The fact that we have some very significant targets in our team will only heighten the danger of ambush. But, our most important goal is to find Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino, Akimichi Choji, Yamanaka Ino, and Temari and Kankuro, heal the injured as much as possible, and return to Konoha to tend to the critically ill. Is that understood?" Everyone nodded, but most in the group seemed absolutely shocked. Since there were no Suna-nin among them, no one had ever seen Gaara play the role of Kazekage, the leader of an entire village. Even Naruto, who understood Gaara on a level that no one else ever could, seemed surprised.

Though Lee, having worked with Gaara on several occasions, just smiled.

"Let's look at our assets," Gaara continued. "We have a phenomenal medic-nin." He nodded at Sakura. "Haruno-san, should we get into a fight, I want you to heal yourself. Forget about saving your chakra. Above all, we need you alive, so you must be prepared to stay on the sidelines should I ask you to, yes?"

"Hai, Gaara-sama," Sakura agreed, though surprised, not many people (medic-nin's excluded) knew that the primary objective of a medic was to stay alive in order to heal the team.

"Right, we also have Konoha's Yellow Hurricane. Naruto, if we get into a fight, give Shikamaru-kun to Haruno-san. You're on the frontlines."

"You know me too well," Naruto replied with a grin.

"And we have two taijutsu specialists…goken and jyuuken, am I right?" Hinata and Lee both nodded.

"Lee, I want you to stay by Haruno-san; the two of you will guard Shikamaru-kun and Neji-san. Lee, if at all possible, I want you to make sure that Haruno-san doesn't have to fight. I know that she is perfectly capable, but I want her uninjured. Also, any shock at all to Neji-san could be lethal at this point. He is critically ill, am I right, Haruno-san?" The pink-haired woman nodded. "It is probably best if Shikamaru-kun is treated in the same respect. Both of them are unresponsive and have no means of defending themselves. Above all, I want both you and Haruno-san to keep them out of the fight." This time, both of the addressed nodded.

"Hyuuga-san, you are an ANBU level Jounin, correct?" The shy woman nodded. "Perfect. You will be up front with Naruto. Naruto's offensive and defensive patterns are very unpredictable and dependent on the maneuvers of the other shinobi; however, you have your jyuuken, so under any circumstance you have the ability to disable an opponent if you are close enough. Naruto, you must work to get Hyuuga-san as close to the enemy as possible. We need to finish any battles quickly and as long as Hyuuga-san is within range, her abilities will work best."

"Then, we have Sai-san. Sai-san, you will be with me. Your attacks are both mid-range and long-range, yes? You and I will be behind Naruto and Hyuuga-san, but in front of Lee and Haruno-san. With your abilities, you should be able to support Naruto and Hyuuga-san from farther away, and in this position, I will be able to give orders to the entire group as the situation warrants them. That will be our battle formation.

"The traveling formation will be a bit different. Hyuuga-san, I want you to let Sai-san carry Haruno-san, all right? Since I have no one to carry, I will be up front. This impairs me from giving orders to the back of the formation, but I should be able to compensate for that by using my sand as a signal. Next, Naruto, you are behind me. You are carrying Shikamaru-kun, but since he is not very injured, you do have some leeway to jog him a bit, understand me? You can fight using kage bunshins, without having to worry as much about injuring him further. Lee you will be behind Naruto. Above all, you _must not fight_ until you put Neji-san down. Any shock at all to his body could kill him. Naruto, if the fight comes to Lee, you are to protect him until he finds a place to put Neji-san down. Then, Sai-san, you and Haruno-san are behind Lee. You also have some leeway to move around. If an ambush occurs, you must protect Haruno-san while she heals herself, after which, you are free to move into your battle formation. Finally, Hyuuga-san, you will be in back. I need you to be checking for traps or signs of enemy shinobi with your Byakugan. So, does everyone understand?"

"Wow," said Naruto, shocked. Sakura grinned.

"I suppose you are the Kazekage for a reason, Gaara-sama." It was true. Gaara had managed to come up with two amazing formations on the spot, while improving moral by reminding everyone of their strengths. Just as well, he seemed to remember every little details about the group member's fighting styles even though he was from a different country entirely. There was no question as to how Gaara managed to rise up in the ranks when he was this talented as a leader.

Naruto ran over and pulled Gaara into a hug, roughly tousling his hair.

"Look at you! Being all, 'I'm not as good as my sister.' God if you keep being so modest, I'll have to…do something incredibly mean!"

"Naruto! Cut it out!"

"Never!" Sakura finally pulled Naruto off of the Kazekage. Gaara shook his head, quickly putting his hair back into place.

"Right, so as we go along, we should start finding our friends, so we'll change our formations accordingly, understood?"

"Sure thing, chief," answered Naruto.

"All right," continued the redhead. "Let's go." Everyone began packing up their stuff, grabbing whomever they had to carry, and getting into formation. In the fuss, Naruto was able to pull Gaara aside.

"Okay," the blonde began, "No lies, are you sure you can do this?" It took the redhead a moment to process the question.

"What do you mean?"

"Gaara, I've never seen you like this…okay, I've seen you like this _once_, but that was when you'd just been brought back from the dead; and what does that tell you?"

"Like what, Naruto?"

"You're pale and shaking, and exhausted. You can barely stand, can you? And what about Orochimaru? When Sasuke activated his chakra, the curse mark reacted. What if your eye does something similar?"

"I know, Naruto," the redhead conceded finally. "I know. I'm not gonna last much longer at this rate, but I have no choice. _We_ have no choice. Once we find Temari or Aburame-san, I'll stand down, but until then—"

"Let me carry you. I can get you, Sai can carry Shikamaru, and Hinata can get Sakura-chan." Gaara frowned. For a moment, he actually considered it. Then, he looked to Shikamaru, with that blank expression, resting limply on Naruto's back. If Gaara was being carried, no one could protect Shikamaru while Naruto was placing him somewhere safe. No, there had to be at least one person who was not carrying an injured comrade. And if Gaara had to keep himself moving on no chakra reserves, with Orochimaru's cells digging into his brain, while exhausted as hell…so be it.

"I'll be okay, Naruto," he reassured. Naruto simply stared at him for a moment before reaching out and pinching his cheeks none-to-lightly. "Ow!" The blonde grinned.

"'Kay, I guess I can let you be stupid just this one time, but I've got a free shoulder whenever you need it." Gaara just smiled in return.

"Gaara-sama!" called Sakura. "We're all ready. Shall we?" Gaara gave a curt nod.

"All right," he agreed loudly enough for the entire group to hear. "Let's go." No later than the moment Gaara finished the order, the group was off.

***I rather enjoy seeing Gaara act like the Kazekage, yeah? Haha! Entertaining. Hope everyone liked! I'd love some reviews if you have the time. Just so I know that people are actually reading this! Lol, it's okay if you can't though. I do that all the time. It'd be hypocritical of me to criticize you for it!**


	12. Past: Naruto and Gaara

***Sorry about the wait on this. I've been having some writer's block, but I'm hoping I can finish this up soon!**

**Notes:**** Teuchi is the chef at Ichiraku's in case anyone forgot. Also, Naruto always seemed to me like the kind of guy who's confident enough to just say ridiculous things in order to amuse himself, such as "All Jinchuurikis love ramen!" Chifuyu refers to all of Lee and Neji's friends as "baa-chan" and "jii-chan". It's used in the Aunt and uncle sense, not the grandma and grandpa sense. She also differentiates between Lee and Neji by calling Lee "Otou-chan" and Neji "Chichiue". Tadaima means "I'm back" in Japanese. When Chifuyu says "He at tadaima" she's just misspeaking.**

**WARNING: Any medical knowledge that Kaiser attempts to portray is actually butchered information that she received from high school level Anatomy, high school level Psychology, and the Discovery Channel. **

**I sincerely apologize to any med students out there who spend this time laughing their asses off. **

**Chapter 12: Past—Naruto and Gaara**

"_You need to eat more! You're worse than Neji, dattebayo." Gaara briefly glanced at his blonde companion. Sometimes, Naruto was more like a mother hen than Gaara's best friend, but he would not trade him for the world._

_They were at Ichiraku's. Naruto had dragged the Kazekage there after an extraordinarily long meeting with Tsunade and the current Raikage. The Uzumaki had spent hours griping about how tedious meetings were (as Tsunade's successor, he was required to be at most). Gaara had to remind him on a daily basis that being a kage was never fun and games, for any reason, whatsoever. _

"_Gaara! Come on! Who goes to Ichiraku's and doesn't get anything? That's like ramen-blasphemy!" The redhead sighed, contented. Even when Naruto became the Hokage and the two of them would be forced to be professional around each other, Gaara was happy knowing that they could easily come to Ichiraku's and become best friends again. In fact, their relationship would probably border on unhealthy (for the state at least). The heads of rival powers should never really be friends._

_Still, as Naruto held out a bit of noodle on his chopsticks, Gaara let those deeply-instilled political schemas simply wash away. He took a bite. "Not bad…" he murmured. Naruto mock-glared._

"_Come on, admit it! You love it. All Jinchuurikis love ramen!" Gaara had to laugh at that._

"_Okay then, it was very good, and I'm sure somewhere out there, Shukaku is very envious of our ramen-dates." Naruto grinned._

"_Damn skippy he is!" The blonde threw an arm around Gaara's shoulders. "You know, I think the two of us are gonna take the Kage Summit by storm after I'm inaugurated." Gaara nodded. It was true after all. _

"_About that, next time, please refrain from introducing me as your boyfriend."_

"_But, Gaara! It's true! Besides, Raikage seemed to get a kick out of it."_

"_So did Tsunade-dono now that I think about it…Wait…is it true? Naruto, are you my boyfriend?" Naruto blinked._

"_I'm not…entirely sure. I mean. You're a hot piece of ass…and so am I. But it's like, we're compatible, and we both find each other attractive, but it would kinda be a pointless endeavor to go out, wouldn't it? I mean, we could have sex right here right now, and nothing would change." Gaara nodded again. It was true. He and Naruto were closer than friends, closer than brothers, probably even closer than lovers, and yet there was not a word in existence to truly describe their relationship. It was rather funny._

_Still, from there, things began to go downhill._

"_Naruto…Gaara…" cut in a dazed voice from behind them. Naruto and Gaara both turned to find a familiar person. Shikamaru was standing there, but nothing about him seemed normal. His posture was extremely straight and tall. He was pale and seemed more than a little shaken. A few locks of hair had fallen from his usual ponytail, and his expression was completely blank. In his arms was a little girl, no older than two. She was a beautiful girl with platinum blond hair that flowed carelessly down to her shoulders, a beautiful pale white complexion, and eyes as bright as sunlit snow. She fidgeted with her light blue dress and stared curiously at the two men in front of her._

"_Hey, Shikamaru, hey, Chibi," Naruto greeted. His smile had faltered at the sight of his friend. "Is everything okay?" Shikamaru slumped down on a stool beside Naruto. He looked about ready to faint. "Shikamaru?" Naruto called again, concerned. The Nara made no attempt to respond, prompting the former to feel his forehead. "Are you sick?"_

_Gaara stood and moved to help. He picked up Chifuyu. "Gaara-jii-chan," she mumbled, burying her face in his shoulder. Chifuyu was normally a calm and curious child. She was always smiling, and though she was never "hyper" per se, she loved to talk. Something was obviously wrong._

"_Chifuyu-chan," Gaara called softly, soothingly. He briefly glanced over at Naruto who was trying to coax Shikamaru into speaking again. He looked back to the frightened child in his arms. "Can you tell me what's going on, Chifuyu-chan?" The sweet girl began sniffling. _

"_Otou-chan," she hiccupped, beginning to cry. "Where Otou-chan?" Gaara, unsure of what else to do, began gently rubbing circles on her back._

"_Naruto? She wants Lee. Where is he?" Gaara's eyes widened as he saw Naruto supporting a violently shaking Shikamaru. The Nara slumped further down in his stool, nearly falling off. Naruto caught him._

"_Shikamaru! Speak to me. Say something!" At this point, Teuchi had begun to notice the scene in front of him as well. _

"_Naruto, he doesn't look so hot. You should get him to the hospital right away. Don't worry about the ramen. Hurry!" Naruto nodded, hoisting Shikamaru up into his arms. _

"_Gaara, come on, we'd better take him to Sakura-chan!" Gaara nodded, carrying Chifuyu and following after Naruto. _

_What was going on? There were so many questions unanswered, and at this point, Chifuyu seemed to be the only person who could possibly know what had happened. What _had_ happened for that matter? Why did Shikamaru have Chifuyu? And why was he sick? Were they attacked? And where was Neji? They could only hope that Sakura could heal Shikamaru, and the latter could give them some answers._

_They made it to the hospital as quick as when Gaara and Lee had taken Neji there all those years ago. Naruto burst through the door shouting, "Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan! We need your help-ttebayo!" Ino, who happened to be on duty marched over to the other blonde._

"_Naruto! This is a _hospital_! You can't just…barge…" she trailed off upon spotting Shikamaru in Naruto's arms. "Oh no," she gasped. "Quick, let's get him to Sakura!" She led them through the halls and up to the third floor. There they found Sakura doing rounds on the I.C.U. patients. "Sakura! There you are!" The pink-haired woman approached the other three people (five if you count Shikamaru and Chifuyu). _

"_What happened?" she asked breathless._

"_We're not entirely sure, Haruno-san," began Gaara, deciding to take charge. "Naruto and I were just having lunch when Nara-kun turned up looking half-dead with Chifuyu-chan. He was only really able to say our names before he fainted. We've got no idea what happened to him." Sakura nodded, catching every single word while analyzing the situation herself. _

"_Come with me," she replied, leading the others into an empty room. She had Naruto lie Shikamaru down on the gurney as she checked him over meticulously. After a few moments, she looked up. Neither Naruto nor Gaara liked the frown on her face. Ino did her best to remain calm, though one of her oldest friends now lay limp on a hospital gurney._

"_What're we looking at here, Sakura?" Ino questioned, taking a deep breath. Sakura bit her lip._

"_His lungs and heart show signs of acute damage. It's likely that he went into shock, which is why he was acting strangely when you two found him." She nodded at Gaara and Naruto. _

"_But, Sakura-chan!" Naruto cried, cobalt blue eyes frantic. "What caused it? How could he have damage like this?" Sakura sighed, running a hand through her pale pink hair. _

"_Well, if this was natural, say he had an acute infection. He'd have been showing symptoms for days—weeks—before it got to this point. Ino, you can verify that he hasn't, right?" The blonde nodded._

"_The other day, he, Choji, and I went out for yakiniku after Shikamaru came back from a mission, and he seemed fine then. I didn't notice anything unusual." Ino gazed down at her dearest friend, sky blue eyes tearful. _

"_And," continued Sakura, "he has no history of heart or lung disease in the family?" Again, Ino nodded._

"_Nothing like this. And he's never had heart or lung problems before. He's had a clean bill of health since the day he was born!" Sakura placed a comforting hand on her old friend's shoulder._

"_In that case, I can only think of one thing that could damage a healthy person's body this quickly." Ino nearly gasped. _

"_You don't mean—" Sakura nodded grimly._

"_Yes, a jyuuken attack." Naruto's eyes widened. Gaara glanced at him._

"_Naruto, that's…the Hyuuga-taijutsu, am I right?" Naruto nodded dazedly. "Who could've…?" Then, all eyes turned to Chifuyu, who buried her face into Gaara's chest. The redhead frowned._

"_She couldn't have," he murmured. "Chifuyu-chan is just a child. Though she knows jyuuken from Neji-san, she couldn't have the power or the control to do so much damage to a special jounin like Nara-kun." Sakura buried her face in her palm._

"_You're right," she murmured. "Of course you're right. Besides if Chifuyu-chan hurt anyone with jyuuken it would be on accident, and you can't damage someone's organs _this severely_ on accident." There was a moment of relief before a darker thought entered Sakura's mind._

"_Gaara-sama…" she murmured, "you don't think…Neji-san could have." Gaara's eyes widened._

"_No," responded Naruto almost immediately. "Never." Surprisingly, Ino jumped in to defend Neji as well._

"_No, Neji-san is already weak because…" she trailed off, trying not to remember that awful night when the brunette had collapsed for the first time. "Besides, he has the most control out of any Hyuuga there is. Even if by chance he and Shikamaru were training…Neji-san would know to _never_ aim for a person's chest even during a spar. It's just too dangerous. And Shikamaru's brilliant. He would never give Neji _the chance_ to hit him in the chest."_

"_And if by the off chance he did get a shot like this in on Shika," cut in Naruto, "Itoko would've brought Shika to the hospital _himself_." _

"_But then who could've done this?" Sakura murmured as she began pouring more healing chakra into Shikamaru's chest._

_It was at this moment that Chifuyu began trying to get down from Gaara's arms. The Kazekage let her down, and she immediately ran over to Shikamaru's bedside. Gaara followed, kneeling down beside her. "Chifuyu-chan?"_

"_Shika-jii-chan," she mumbled. Gaara frowned._

"_Chifuyu-chan, do you know what happened to 'Shika-jii-chan'?" She nodded._

"_Shika-jii-chan….p-pr-pro-pro," she stumbled, unsure of the word. _

"_Protect?" Gaara tried. The little girl nodded again. "Nara-kun protected you? From what?" She tried again._

"_Shika-jii-chan and Chichiue…pro-protect…" Gaara glanced over at Naruto._

"_Chichiue is Neji-san, yes?" Naruto nodded._

"_Yeah, Otou-chan is Lee, and Chichiue is Neji." The redhead turned back to Chifuyu._

"_What did 'Shika-jii-chan' and 'Chichiue' protect you from?" Chifuyu clutched onto Gaara's arms, looking more frightened than the latter had ever seen her._

"_From….f-from Chichiue obaa-s-s-ama." Gaara blinked._

"_His grandmother?" he murmured confused. He looked back to Naruto expecting answers. Instead, he was met with wide eyes. _

"_The Hyuuga elders!" Naruto cried. "Chifuyu," began Naruto in a softer tone. He knelt down beside her as well. "Where's Neji now?" The girl wrapped her arms around Naruto._

"_Naru-jii-chan," she mumbled. Naruto smiled gently, tousling her hair. _

"_Chibi, it's okay," he comforted. "You can tell Naru-jii-chan." _

"_Chichiue….Chichiue at tadaima."_

"_Tadaima?" questioned Naruto, confused at the mistake in speech. Understanding reflected in Gaara's bright green eyes._

"_I think she means at her home." Naruto nodded._

"_Gaara," he began sternly, "I've got no idea what we're dealing with here, but I have a feeling that I'm gonna need your help. We have to find Neji before the Hyuuga elders do something horrible!" Gaara nodded. He turned back to the blonde girl in Naruto's arms._

"_Chifuyu-chan," he murmured, trying not to sound afraid or serious. "Naru-jii-chan and I have to go find your Chichiue, okay? Until then, we want you to stay with Ino-baa-chan and Sakura-baa-chan." Chifuyu shook her head frantically._

"_With Gaara-jii-chan," she murmured. _

"_I'm sorry, Chifuyu-chan, but you can't. We need you here. If you're with us, then who can protect Shika-jii-chan. You're a big, strong kunoichi, aren't you? Well, we need you to protect Haruno-san, Yamanaka-san, and Nara-kun, right?" Chifuyu's tearful eyes cleared, revealing a burning determination to protect her friends, just like the eyes of so many Konoha shinobi before her. Gaara smiled, feeling a strange sort of pride in his best friend's daughter. "Okay, Naruto and I will find your Chichiue; until then, you know your mission." Gaara gave Naruto a curt nod, and they were off._

_They jumped from rooftop to rooftop at top speed. Naruto was in the lead, as Gaara did not know the layout of the village as well. The blonde briefly turned back._

"_Oi, Gaara," he called. Gaara nodded to show that he was listening. "You're gonna make a great Otou-chan someday." The redhead blinked, surprised. _

"_Am I?" Naruto grinned._

"_Look at you! You're so great with Chibi. You know exactly what to say. I mean, back there, I was speechless, but you handled it like a pro! Have you babysat before or something?" Gaara gazed back at Naruto, raising a hairless brow. Naruto pouted, only then remembering Gaara's…colorful past in Sunagakure. "…Never mind then."_

_Going at the pace that they were, it took only minutes for the two to reach Neji, Lee, and Chifuyu's apartment. They exchanged glances. Naruto tried the doorknob, only to find that the door was unlocked._

_Never a good sign._

_They entered. "Neji?" called Naruto. "Itoko? You here?" There was no response. They continued into the living room, only to find that everything was out of place. There were papers and books on the floor. Broken glass littered the apartment. Furniture was overturned. Lamps and clocks had fallen off their shelves. Even Neji and Lee's team picture had fallen to the ground, its frame shattered. Naruto looked back to Gaara, who was frowning deeply._

"_A struggle," he murmured simply. Naruto grew pale._

"_Neji!" he tried again, more fervently. "Neji? If you're here, answer me! For the love of God, say something!"_

_Gaara followed a trail of broken glass and blood into a hallway. "Neji-san?" he called as he turned the corner. He nearly fell over when he saw Neji lying almost lifeless on the floor, surrounded by broken glass. "Naruto!" he cried. "Get in here _now_!" The blonde ran over to him and nearly gasped. _

"_Oh God…Neji." He knelt down beside his cousin's limp form, ignoring the broken shards that threatened to penetrate his skin._

"_Naruto, is he breathing?" The Uzumaki turned and nodded. He gently lifted Neji off the ground and carried him to the living room couch. There, he lightly shook the brunette._

"_Neji? Can you here me? Wake up." Nothing. He turned back to Gaara and shook his head._

"_What could have knocked him unconscious like this?" asked Gaara. "Was it a jyuuken strike?" Naruto shrugged._

"_I don't know…unless." His eyes widened as a premise made itself known to him. "Oh no! Oh God, they _didn't_. If they _did_, I swear to God I'll…" he trailed off, opting instead to remove Neji's headband (he had stopped wearing his hitai-ate long ago) and the bandages under it. There, he found the juin seal, but it was not as it should be. It seemed to glow brighter than usual, as if it fed off of Neji's pain. Angry black lines surrounded the mark, making it seem more visible than ever. _

"_Naruto…" Gaara murmured, "What's that? I…I remember seeing it in the Chuunin Exams, but…" Naruto gazed at Gaara seriously._

"_This is Neji's curse mark, and I think the Hyuuga elders just activated it." He gathered Neji back into his arms. "Come on, we need to get Neji to Tsunade _now_." Gaara nodded without a second thought. _


End file.
